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The Current Chiropractic Bill in Congress & Why You Should Care–from the Student Perspective
For those unfamiliar with the current bill making its way through Congress, now is a great time to become informed about legislation that may impact your future practice as a chiropractor. The Chiropractic Medicare Coverage Modernization Act (H.R. 539 and S.106) aims to expand Medicare coverage to include more services provided by chiropractors, not just the current limitation to manual manipulation of the spine. This bill would include coverage for evaluation and management services, diagnostic imaging, and other non-drug therapies, aligning Medicare with other federal programs and private health plans. The current limited scope of coverage for chiropractic services was established in 1972 (when chiropractic services were first included in Medicare) but unfortunately have significant restrictions compared to other health care professions. The goal of this proposed change is to provide Medicare-insured seniors the option to utilize conservative care options and non-pharmaceutical approaches to pain management.
Why is this important for both students and practicing physicians? For starters, the elephant in the health care waiting room is the unfortunate opioid epidemic we are facing in the United States. In 2017, this crisis was declared a public health emergency under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (which was renewed in June 2024), and this crisis takes the lives of 220 people every day. There is recent research evidence that shows the significant decrease in prescription opioid use for those who utilize chiropractic care for spinal pain management–one of the most frequent complaints that we face in our field. In addition, it has been shown that this method of care can reduce the incidence of adverse drug events in the treatment of low back pain as well. This increased Medicare coverage ends up being beneficial for the government too, actually saving money by lessening the cost of downstream health care services by other medical management (as shown by this 2024 systematic review).
As the research representative of National’s SACA chapter, I have learned that it is very important to stay informed and involved with legislation impacting our field. To think about it in a simple scenario–think about our exam and management courses. We spend years learning thorough head-to-toe examination protocols and treatment techniques, and we expect to be able to use them. A patient with the current Medicare coverage may need to see a different provider in order to avoid out-of-pocket costs for the same exact exam that you would do. It is unfair for both parties involved — but hopefully change is on the horizon.
The landscape of chiropractic and health care is evolving, and creating a more balanced interdisciplinary playing field is essential to ensuring that all practitioners can leverage their strengths to deliver the highest quality care to every patient who seeks our help.
NUHS Student American Chiropractic Association (SACA) Board Members (L to R): Ryan Thometz, Christina Sweiss, Klairice Schwartz, Kaithlyn Servin, Kaley Walsh, Taylor Nelson and Joshua Franz.
The current National IL SACA board will be traveling to Washington D.C. to lobby for the passing of The Chiropractic Medicare Coverage Modernization Act at Engage 2025. If this interests you, consider getting involved in the Student American Chiropractic Association! Email [email protected] for more information!
To learn more about NUHS’ Doctor of Chiropractic program, click here.