To: To: Pennsylvania State Senate Consumer Protection & Professional Licensure CommitteeVOTE NO ON PENNSYLVANIA SENATE BILL 834 (NATUROPATHIC DOCTOR PRACTICE ACT).
Why is this important?
Legislation May Affect Choices in Pennsylvania's Naturopathic Care
We are urging citizens to contact their state representatives to vote “no” on proposed senate bill 834, introduced this past July. The bill would repeal Act 128, which Governor Tom Wolf signed into law November 2016.
The law requires registration of practitioners in the naturopathic field. Act 128 is an amendment to HB 516, which would regulate naturopathic doctors, set education and training requirements and allows only those that meet those qualifications to present themselves as “naturopathic doctors” or a “doctor of naturopathic medicine”. Bill 834 includes much of the licensing requirements and penalties originally presented in HB 516.
“Basically, there’s a select group that qualifies themselves as ‘naturopathic physicians’ claiming that they are medically trained, and they want exclusivity with the title ‘naturopathic doctor,’”
This law could adversely affect consumer choice and access to natural products and could also put 250 practicing Traditional Naturopaths out of business.
The issue is a group trying to claim that these natural products and natural foods and herbs are medicine, and it will make it more difficult for consumers to access preventative care. Prevention is what traditional naturopathy is—an educational model teaching clients about health and laws of nature, rather than diagnosing and prescribing.
Legislation May Affect Choices in Pennsylvania's Naturopathic Care
We are urging citizens to contact their state representatives to vote “no” on proposed senate bill 834, introduced this past July. The bill would repeal Act 128, which Governor Tom Wolf signed into law November 2016.
The law requires registration of practitioners in the naturopathic field. Act 128 is an amendment to HB 516, which would regulate naturopathic doctors, set education and training requirements and allows only those that meet those qualifications to present themselves as “naturopathic doctors” or a “doctor of naturopathic medicine”. Bill 834 includes much of the licensing requirements and penalties originally presented in HB 516.
“Basically, there’s a select group that qualifies themselves as ‘naturopathic physicians’ claiming that they are medically trained, and they want exclusivity with the title ‘naturopathic doctor,’”
This law could adversely affect consumer choice and access to natural products and could also put 250 practicing Traditional Naturopaths out of business.
The issue is a group trying to claim that these natural products and natural foods and herbs are medicine, and it will make it more difficult for consumers to access preventative care. Prevention is what traditional naturopathy is—an educational model teaching clients about health and laws of nature, rather than diagnosing and prescribing.
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