The consensus bill compiles the desires and intent of about 10 different naturopathic medicine and health freedom groups into a single set of statements, with agreement on scope of practice, objectives, rules and limitations, and also implements the spirit of the Proclamation by the Governor of the State of Florida on April 24, 2003. This would be a modification of the bill HB 1261. Historically, the bill has not been in a form that was universally supported by differing groups of health providers; the consensus bill seeks to overcome that and therefore would have a much greater chance of success in the legislature.
The consensus bill:
a) Provides an updated definition of naturopathic medicine, which was suggested by Committee staff,
b) Prevents naturopathic physicians from prescribing controlled substances,
c) Prohibits naturopathic physicians from performing surgery, and only allows minor office procedures (the Bowen bill allows minor surgery which was really only intended to be the definition of minor office procedures, but was not clarified),
d) Allows a school meeting the same quality standards as a CMNE accredited school to be considered by the Board for approval of its program as an approved program - this would allow the Lane College that has been a pioneer in reactivating naturopathic licensing to have its M.D., D.O., and D.C. graduates become licensed, even though it cannot apply for candidacy for CMNE accreditation prior to the naturopathic licensing bill passing.
e) Allows M.D.s, D.O.s, and D.C.s with many years education and training in naturopathic medicine to be considered individually by the board for equivalent education and training to the four year naturopathic medicine degree and so that they may become licensed and subject to the naturopathic board for their naturopathic medicine practice.
f) Exempts "natural health therapies" that don't meet the requirements for licensing of "posing an imminent threat of significant harm" from the requirement of naturopathic medicine licensing and licensing by other health practitioner acts.
g) Requires practitioners of natural health therapies to disclose to the public 1) that they are not licensed Naturopathic Physicians and 2) their actual credentials, so that the public is better informed than they currently are with this group of practitioners. (This has been a challenge to agree on language because natural health therapies covers such a broad group and the definition essentially exempts the group if they don't do what is considered more risky activities - e.g. puncturing the skin)
h) Is a "practice act", which Senator Webster's bill from last year is not. This is a requirement if the bill is to survive tests of constitutionality.
i) Does not prevent anyone from selling, marketing, distributing, using, recommending, or furnishing information or counseling about the use of vitamins, health foods, dietary supplements, herbs, homeopathic remedies or other products of nature, the sale of which is not otherwise prohibited under state or federal law.
The Intent of the Consensus Bill: If time doesn't allow to read the bill, the intent clause at the beginning might be helpful:
Section 1. Legislative Intent:
(1) Consistent with federal and state of Florida legislation supporting complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), the legislature desires to restore professional licensure of naturopathic physicians, practitioners of CAM.
(a) Congressional action in 1998 established the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), a division of the National Institutes of Health, to provide research support to alternative and complimentary medicine. NCAAM identifies naturopathic medicine as a CAM practice as does the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies.
(b) In 2001, Chapter 2001-116, Florida Laws, gave patients the right to receive and licensed health care practitioners the right to provide complementary and alternative health care with informed consent. (c) Despite the widespread and growing use of CAM by Floridians as evidenced by a comprehensive report by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies in 2005, licensing of naturopathic physicians, which was initiated in Florida in 1927, was suspended in 1959, and has not yet been reinstated. Currently four accredited naturopathic medical schools are operating in the United States, and in 2002, the State of Florida licensed a new naturopathic college, which has adopted the national standards of the Council on Naturopathic Medical Education, the accrediting body recognized by the U. S. Department of Education. While naturopathic physicians were previously extended a broad scope of practice including all prescription drugs and surgery rights similar to general practitioners of medicine, a more restricted scope of practice is intended, prohibiting prescription of controlled substances and surgery and allowing only minor office procedures.
(d) Consistent with the existing CAM legislation passed in Florida in 2001 providing citizens the right to choose from all health care options, by reestablishing licensing of naturopathic physicians, the Legislature intends to allow citizens access to a holistic, integrative system of primary health care focusing on wellness and prevention of disease, emphasizing the therapeutic use of food and nutrients to maintain health and treat illness, applying clinical, therapeutic, scientifically-based, biochemistry-oriented, nutritional medicine, including laboratory testing of nutrient levels for more accurate diagnosis and balancing of systems, recognizing the importance of the natural healing arts and natural processes, addressing both the physical and vitalistic aspects of the human body, providing counseling on lifestyle choices, striving to identify and resolve the underlying cause of a condition or disease and to employ the least invasive treatment methods, and responding to the need for effective treatment of chronic disease, which is currently 78% of the U.S. medical budget of $1.9 trillion.
Definition of Naturopathic Medicine:
Also, the definition of naturopathic medicine might be helpful:
(6) "Naturopathic medicine" means a system of primary health care to support and stimulate a patient's instrinsic self-healing processes as taught in an approved naturopathic medical program and practiced by a licensed naturopathic physician to prevent, diagnose and treat human health conditions, injuries, and diseases that uses a combination of:
(a) The practice of biomechanical, material and vitalistic sciences, including but not limited to
clinical nutritional medicine, medical manipulation and mechanotherapy; and (b) medical disease diagnostics and treatments, including but not limited to physical exams, clinical laboratory testing, physiological function testing and exams, electrocardiograms, diagnostic imaging techniques, phlebotomy, nutritional infusions, and minor office procedures.
(c) It is recognized that some components of naturopathic medicine fall within natural health therapies, which do not require licensure under this chapter.
Nothing in this chapter shall be held or construed apply to or affect the practice of osteopathic medicine, chiropractic medicine, Christian Science, or any other treatment authorized and provided for by law.
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