“Thank you so very much for the Qi-Unity Report. This e-publication is most valuable in keeping me abreast of what is happening in AOM, and I really appreciate your efforts in putting this document together.”

David M. Sale, JD, LLM
Executive Director
Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine

Greetings AOM Members and Colleagues:

Spring has arrived, and the trees of Sacramento are blooming. Anticipation is in the air as we all come together for the good of the medicine. Acupuncture Awareness Day in Sacramento is a great opportunity to get AOM in front of policymakers and the public. We invite all of you to consider the significance and timing of this event and then commit to joining us in a show of force for the AOM profession. We stress the importance of the timing—as the healthcare summit in Washington, D.C. exemplifies—we have a golden opportunity before us.

Never before has AOM enjoyed such popularity—and the realistic opportunity for inclusion in healthcare reform such public acceptance implies. But we can only get there as a group if we all work together in a demonstration of numbers. On that account, if you are receiving the Qi-Unity Report but have not renewed your AAAOM membership, please take a moment to do so now. If you know a colleague who has yet to join, kindly encourage him or her to do so, such that we can marshal support for the profession when we need it the most—now.

Please join us to celebrate acupuncture and Oriental medicine as we assert its rightful place in the U.S. Come sharpen your tools and meditate on our collective history; let’s plot our next steps as a group and show policymakers why they need to include AOM in healthcare reform for everyone.

The AAAOM needs your skills, energy and efforts, to repeat: now more than ever.

Perhaps the biggest news we have to report this month comes from Mississippi. Jerusha DeGroote, president of the Mississippi Oriental Medicine Association, has announced that the governor of Mississippi has recently signed their acupuncture practice act! And this issue of the Qi-Unity Report features an extensive report from the Healthcare Summit, written by Elisa Behnk. Still interested in more information on the Healthcare Summit? Staff editorial coordinator Lynn Eder has gathered many articles on the subject into a one-stop shopping location for your reading pleasure. For those of you who look forward to The Integrator Blog as much as we do, we appeal to your patience as John Weeks is taking a temporary hiatus.

Once again, the line-up for the 2009 AAAOM Conference and Exposition includes people you have said you want to learn from and listen to. Airline ticket prices are at historic lows. Book your place at the conference now and save money: www.aaaomonline.com. We look forward to seeing you in Sacramento!

Look to the Qi-Unity Report for information on the issues that affect your life and practice in AOM.

The AAAOM is interested in your feedback. We invite you to use our General Feedback page to let us know your opinions and insights.

Table of Contents:

International News

• International Links for March, 2009

• Recent Legislative Activity Summary
• Mississippi’s First Acupuncture Practice Act

National AOM Issues

• Blue Poppy's China Facility is GMP Compliant
• Healthcare Summit and Healthcare Reform News Releases
• Healthcare Media Watch: Acupuncture and the “Unscientific” Argument

• Eight Healthcare Principles and AAAOM Advocacy for AOM in Healthcare Reform

AAAOM Activities

• AAAOM Letter of Support for HF286
• The Qi-Unity Report Story Project: Add to the Body of AOM Knowledge
• Practitioners Hope to Expand Medicare to Include Acupuncture

• March National Links

Continuing Education and Events

• AOMA Occupational Acupuncture Series
• Qigong Event Offers 32 NCCAOM Approved CEUs
• SCUHS Receives $150K from Standard Process
• Tung’s Points with Susan Johnson
• NHSU Students Spruce Up Pillsbury House Clinic
• Announcing the CSOMA 2009 Conference & Expo!

• National Health Policy Debate Gets Underway

• Dear Prospective Advertiser:

International Links for March, 2009
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/1a.html

State Legislative Activities

Recent Legislative Activity Summary
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/2a.html

Mississippi’s First Acupuncture Practice Act
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/2a.html

National AOM Issues

Blue Poppy's China Facility is GMP Compliant
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/3a.html

Healthcare Summit and Healthcare Reform News Releases
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/3b.html

Healthcare Media Watch: Acupuncture and the “Unscientific” Argument
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/3c.html

Practice Management

Eight Healthcare Principles and AAAOM Advocacy for AOM in Healthcare Reform
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/4a.html

AAAOM Activities

AAAOM Letter of Support for HF286
Michael Taromina issues letter of support for Minnesota State Bill HF286
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/5a.html

The Qi-Unity Report Story Project: Add to the Body of AOM Knowledge
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/5b.html

Practitioners Hope to Expand Medicare to Include Acupuncture
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/5c.html

Links

March Links
Here you will find a set of links to various AOM articles of note found on the web.
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/6a.html

Continuing Education and Events

AOMA Occupational Acupuncture Series
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/7a.html

Qigong Event Offers 32 NCCAOM Approved CEUs
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/7b.html

SCUHS Receives $150K from Standard Process
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/7c.html

Tung’s Points with Susan Johnson
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/7d.html

NHSU Students Spruce Up Pillsbury House Clinic
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/7e.html

Announcing the CSOMA 2009 Conference & Expo!
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/7f.html

AAAOM Student Organization

National Health Policy Debate Gets Underway
Elisa Behnk checks in from the healthcare summit, reporting on the bright prospects emerging from this historic occasion.
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/8a.html

Products, Services, and Member Savings

Dear Prospective Advertiser:
Investing your advertising dollars in The American Acupuncturist and the Qi-Unity Report makes good sense for so many reasons.
http://www.aaaomonline.info/qiunity/09/03/9a.html

In closing,

As always, your feedback serves as a useful lens through which we may look at how well we are serving our members. Please take a moment to express your thoughts to us.

General Feedback

In Health,

Rebekah Christensen, Executive Director

Douglas Newton, Managing Editor