July 2006

WCA Anti‑Defamation Fund update

by Matthew McCoy, DC

Bus ads continue to spur outrage, action

You have no doubt heard about the buses in Connecticut plastered with the rhetorical question about being injured by a chiropractor. The question is followed by the web address of 911neckusa.com. The ads were placed by the Chiropractic Stroke Victims Awareness Group and Neck911 is a network of professionals who provide consultations on complications due to neck manipulation ‑‑ convenient isn't it? Its web site is operated by John W. Kinsinger, M.D., an anesthesiologist who has investigated many chiropractors. Dr. Kinsinger denies that he had anything to do with the content or placing of the ads.

Righteous indignation is the order of the day for chiropractors all over the country, not just for those along the bus route. Television interviews with two women who allege they suffered strokes secondary to a chiropractic adjustment tug at the sympathies of those who watched.

As terrible as the tragedies are that these women suffered its clear they have been duped and manipulated by those individuals who have a vested interest in yelling fire in a crowded theatre ‑‑ when in fact there is no fire.

The Reality

The bottom line in the chiropractic and stroke debate is that terminology and an understanding of research hierarchy is extremely critical to this discussion and this is where people get lost. "Causation" and "association" are two words that cause the biggest confusion.

The reality is that there is no human experimental evidence that chiropractic adjustments or neck manipulations are causally related to strokes. The claims and statements that have been made and that have been interpreted by plaintiff attorneys and plaintiff experts like Kinsinger to contend a link are based largely on case controlled studies. These are small, retrospective, observational studies.

A multitude of systematic distortions (biases) may affect the results and conclusions drawn from case‑control studies. Other criteria must be used to determine whether an association is actually causative because an association, no matter how strong, does not prove causation. At this point in time due to the rarity with which VBA's occur, experimental evidence in humans and prospective cohort studies examining the hypothesis that chiropractic adjustments cause stroke ‑‑ do not exist.

If such studies were to be carried out they would take a number of years to complete and would require thousands of subjects because of the rarity of the occurrence.

Despite the undeniable facts just outlined ‑‑ chiropractors are being accused of causing strokes and are being sued for malpractice on an increasingly regular basis. Vulnerable patients are seized upon by the likes of Kinsinger who must rely on asserting biological plausibility and pulling the emotional strings of a public who may not be able to get past the disability they see to the facts. They need to make someone pay.

Don't just sit there!

While individual outrage on the part of chiropractors is occurring we are once again suffering from what is known as the Prisoner's Dilemma. This is where all members have to act in order for any one member to benefit. It's time to put a stop to this malicious anti‑chiropractic campaign before it spreads across the country.

The WCA is taking action ... NOW!

We have recruited a nationally known health freedom attorney, Carlos Negrete, and his team to take a stand against this extremist group of anti‑chiropractic opponents and we're prepared to fight them in court and in the press to protect our profession. Mr. Negrete is the famed lawyer who took chiropractic's arch‑enemy at The Quackbusters to court five times ‑‑ and won each time!

The WCA has already contacted the Greater Bridgeport Transit Authority and demanded that it remove the ads. But those ads mean big bucks to the GBTA and it's insisting it won't do anything about them. Not surprising when you consider how much money this campaign must bring them.

Also imagine how much money plaintiff's experts including medical doctors and chiropractors will make testifying against chiropractors in alleged stroke cases that come about solely because of these ads.

If we back down now, those ads will spring up around the country. Millions of people will see them and millions more will be directed to a website that says: "If upper neck manipulation were a drug, the FDA would have banned it long ago." The implication is clear: cervical adjustments should be outlawed. What next, all adjustments?

This isn't an isolated event that won't affect you. You are going to be next and by the time the anti‑chiropractic ads roll down your street, it'll be too late to stop them.

The WCA has established the Chiropractic Anti‑Defamation Fund to raise the money necessary to take whatever steps are needed to get those ads off the buses and make it impossible for this rabid anti‑chiropractic group to do any more damage. If it means filing a lawsuit, we're prepared to go to state or federal court.

The WCA has also set up an emergency response team that can mobilize in hours to take action whenever and wherever these anti‑chiropractic attacks occur. This chiropractic "Special Forces Unit" will react immediately and forcefully to protect our profession's reputation and position. This is not a time to just sit by and watch these things happen and gain momentum. There will be a point where the "big lie" is accepted by consumers and it will be too late. But you need to get involved as well. You can't sit back and let "the other guy" fight your battles.

There are two things you can do right now to help:

1. Be vigilant for similar billboards, bus ads, etc., in your community. Let the WCA know immediately if you see any. Take photographs whenever possible and e-mail them to us. Every minute we delay, they gain a foothold.

2. MOST IMPORTANT: Consider making a monetary contribution or pledge to the WCA's Chiropractic Anti‑Defamation Fund to help finance the legal battles that are sure to come. This is going to be a costly battle against the anti‑chiropractic forces that are well‑funded (which gives you a clue to who might be behind them). Every penny you give to the Fund will be spent to fight anti‑chiropractic campaigns, beginning with the Bridgeport buses and going on to groups like Quackbusters.

Right now, we need just 200 dedicated DCs to jump start the fund by pledging $1,200 (payable as a one‑time contribution or $100 a month). Just 200 chiropractors out of 60,000 will get the ball rolling.

This group will be known as the "WCA Special Forces Unit" and will be recognized in The Chiropractic Journal and on the WCA website.

To become one of these 200 doctors willing to support the chiropractic "Special Forces Unit," go to: https://www.wcamedia.com/gateway/index2.asp

SPECIAL NOTICE:  Those of you willing to take a stronger stand and have your voice heard can -- with your pledge of $5,000 or more ‑‑ become a Special Forces Unit Advisor, and participate in the WCA Anti‑Defamation Council and strategic planning.

Please take action on this right now.

(Matthew McCoy, DC, is editor of the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research and Director of Research at Life University College of Chiropractic. He is a founding board member of the Council on Chiropractic Practice currently serving as its Vice President and Chairman of the Guidelines Committee and Vice Chair of the Research Committee. He is the Representative of the CCP for the National Chiropractic Leadership Forum and is the WCA liaison to the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Complimentary and Alternative Medicine. As chair of the World Chiropractic Alliance's Chiropractic Advocacy council he assists doctors in defending themselves in malpractice actions and board complaints. He has served as an expert witness and consultant in numerous state board actions, malpractice cases, peer review, insurance and IME issues. He is also vice president of RCS ‑‑ Research & Clinical Science. He can be reached at info@rcsprogram.com)