Naturopathic Medicine: Federal Support for Complementary And Alternative Medicine

The federal government has responded to the American public’s accelerating interest in complementary and alternative medicine. Learn what’s being done now to ensure the quality of complementary and alternative medicine and to increase the public’s access to it …

White House Commission on Complementary And Alternative Medicine Policy

In March 2002, the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy (WHCCAMP) presented to President George W. Bush its recommended blue print for increasing public access to safe and effective complementary and alternative medicine health care services.

Representing hundreds of hours of research and deliberation by some of the nation’s leading health care professionals, the commission’s report is a significant milestone in the advancement of natural medicine.

Full implementation of the report’s recommendations and action steps would fundamentally change the face of complementary and alternative medicine legislation and would expedite the integration of complementary and alternative medicine within the U.S. health care system.

The report includes 104 action steps and 29 recommendations, among them:

* Improve public access to complementary and alternative medicine providers by removing inappropriate barriers to insurance coverage.
* Incorporate complementary and alternative medicine concepts and practices into federal and corporate health promotion.
* Increase financial support for complementary and alternative medicine research.
* Provide education on complementary and alternative medicine practices and professions to conventional practitioners.
* Provide complementary and alternative medicine education grants, including curriculum and faculty development.
* Provide assistance to states to develop more consistent regulatory standards.

National Center for Complementary And Alternative Medicine

In response to the accelerating interest in complementary and alternative medicine, the U.S. Congress created the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) within the National Institutes of Health. The NCCAM is dedicated to exploring complementary and alternative medicine practices in the context of rigorous science. To this end, it partners with and provides grants to research centers and academic institutions, including some AANMC member schools.

Source: Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges