Oriental Medicine Practice Act for Mississippi HB 458

On February 12, 2009, the Mississippi House of Representatives voted in favor of HB 458, Mississippi’s initial legislation for the licensure of NCCAOM certified practitioners of acupuncture and Oriental medicine. The Mississippi Oriental Medicine Association (MOMA) considers this a stunning victory in light of the fact that 2009 is only the second year our organization has pushed the bill. There is still much work to do in the Senate, but here are a few of the highlights from the last couple of weeks.

On January 22, 2009, the Mississippi Oriental Medicine Association hosted Acupuncture Day at the Capitol. Early morning muffins and an informative DVD and power point presentation were displayed in the Capitol Rotunda in Jackson. Along with help from several practitioners from neighboring states, our organization was able to answer questions and show support for HB 458. Complete with “I heart Acupuncture” lapel stickers, we tracked down respective legislators and brought this issue face-to-face with the public. Our tenacity throughout the day really showed our elected officials how much this means to the people of Mississippi. Our Governor, Haley Barbour, even visited our booth and gave us his “thumbs up”!

In the weeks that followed, Dennis Holmes, LAc (VP of MOMA), Ayres Haxton (attorney for MOMA) and David Stephens (my new husband), all pounded the Capitol marble daily. Individually, we “buttonholed” legislators and spoke with them candidly about the opposition to this bill and encouraged them to see our side of the issue. We waded our way through the Public Health Committee in the House. The Mississippi State Medical Association (MSMA) initially told us they had a friendly amendment, and if we would wait two days for them to prepare it, then they would support our bill. Two days later, they had nothing and decided to oppose the bill anyway, therefore wasting precious calendar time. The chairman recognized the effort on the MSMA’s part was in poor taste and assigned a sit-down meeting with their association and the executive director of the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure to hash out, on paper, any disagreements before HB 458 went to the House floor.

Although the State Medical Association wanted to strip our scope of practice down to only the use of needles and to change the name of our bill from The Oriental Medicine Practice Act to simply The Acupuncture Act, we walked away from the meeting with all of our modalities, including herbs. They also expected to amend the public accessibility from an MD referral language down to direct supervision by an MD (same premises). We were able to defend ourselves rigorously with the help of NCCAOM credentials and retain some autonomy.

On to the House Chamber we slowly moved, and two weeks later, our bill was adopted by a margin of 80 yeas and 42 nays. Because the bill asks for a fee for licensure, it is considered a revenue bill and requires a 3/5 majority to adopt, which is 74 votes.

This is our first year in the Senate, and we are looking for as much help as we can get. Please send your letters of kind support to the Mississippi Public Health and Welfare Committee. You can visit this website for Chairman Hob Bryan to find his contact information. He is already on our side, so polite encouragement would be great!
http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/members/senate/bryan.xml

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to contact:
Jerusha De Groote Stephens, MSOM, LAc
President ~ Mississippi Oriental Medicine Association
601.850.0970
www.mississippiacupuncture.org