August 2003

Senate Report urges more D.C. research

WCA, CCP testimony instrumental in pushing for research funds in appropriations bill

When the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee met last month to hold hearings on "Health Care Access and Cost Containment Strategies," the World Chiropractic Alliance and the Council on Chiropractic Practice (CCP) made sure Senators learned more about the unique role of chiropractic, and how chiropractic could reduce health care costs.

Prepared by CCP President Christopher Kent, D.C., the written testimony included persuasive arguments based on solid research, and urged Congress to appropriate more money for chiropractic studies. Dr. Kent is a member of the WCA Board of Directors.

Following the hearing, Committee staff members were given draft language prepared by Kent that was later incorporated into the final report to the Fiscal Year 2004 spending bill funding the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The process is a complex one, according to Michael Fulton, Executive Vice President of Golin/Harris International, who has been retained by the WCA to secure federal funding for a multi-year chiropractic research study that will further validate the need to expand the role of chiropractic in the U.S. health care system. Fulton said the testimony and report language are part of a comprehensive campaign building a case for $1.4 million in federal funding for the research study.

The research proposal is being developed by the CCP, Florida Atlantic University and the public teaching clinics of Sherman College and Life University.

"When the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate finalize their respective versions of the 13 appropriations bills that make up the total federal budget, a report is published outlining more detail on the contents of each bill," he explains. "We saw an opportunity to enhance the role of chiropractic wellness through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) when the Senate Appropriations Committee completed its version of the Fiscal Year 2004 Labor‑Health and Human Services‑Education Appropriations Bill which includes funding for the AHRQ."

The final Committee Report included a section on chiropractic care based in great part on the WCA/CCP language. The Report stated: "The Committee believes additional research is necessary to further quantify the already‑known benefits of chiropractic care. The results of several patient‑based studies suggest that chiropractic care may result in significant savings of healthcare dollars and reduce physician visits and hospital stays. The Committee encourages AHRQ to develop objective outcome‑based assessment tools and a systematic data gathering and analysis process leading to the development of `best practices' for enhancing the physical, mental, and social aspects of health in a diverse patient population." It also noted separately that the Committee "strongly urges NCCAM to increase support for the chiropractic research center."

Fulton noted, "This language is likely to cause the AHRQ to be more open to peer‑reviewed proposals seeking to further study the cost‑savings and wellness benefits of vertebral subluxation‑centered chiropractic. Dr. Christopher Kent played a pivotal role in the language and the remainder of the group approved the draft version we gave the Committee. We also owe a debt of gratitude to Senators Arlen Specter (R‑Pa.) who chairs the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor‑HHS‑Education and Senator Tom Harkin (D‑Iowa) who is the ranking Democrat on this Subcommittee."

The testimony submitted to the Subcommittee by the WCA and CCP referenced several research studies showing the cost benefits of chiropractic care, including one in which study participants using chiropractic reported 21% less time in hospitals over the previous three years. In another study, chiropractic patients spent only 31% of the national average for health care services when compared to health care consumers of the same age. In that study, the chiropractic patients also experienced 50% fewer medical provider visits then their comparable peers. The health habits of patients receiving maintenance care were better overall than the general population, including decreased use of cigarettes and decreased use of nonprescription drugs.

"For many years, the federal government has recognized chiropractic services as an appropriate form of health care," Kent noted in the written testimony. "Chiropractic services have been covered under the Medicare program since 1972. More recently, legislation has been enacted that provides for chiropractic services in the Department of Defense and the Veteran's Administration."