Congressional “Sense” Resolution Urges Chiropractic Role in Military
Some members of the U.S. Congress think that it is high time that chiropractors are appointed to full commissions in the United States Armed Forces. Representatives Neil Abercrombie (D-HI), Thelma Drake (R-VA), Ron Paul (R-TX) and Robert Brady (D-PA) have all stepped forward to sponsor a Joint Resolution to push the idea forward through both houses of Congress.
The “Sense of Congress” message they are jointly sponsoring states that the “Secretary of Defense should take immediate steps to appoint doctors of Chiropractic as commissioned officers in the Armed Forces.” The type of bill, a “Sense of Congress,” is used as a statement of recommendation from the Congress and goes into the official record. While it does not create or amend a law, it is a strong expression of Congressional opinion and does not require the signature of the President of the United States to implement.
The history of attempting to get chiropractors commissioned in the U.S. Armed Forces goes back to the early 1990s. Congress was lobbied heavily during this time to bring it about and the Defense Authorization Amendment of 1992 was passed with a provision to allow the Secretary of Defense the authority to commission DCs as healthcare officers. Unfortunately, this never happened even though other healthcare providers like medical doctors and dentists do receive commissions.
The “Sense of Congress” message has now been brought forward as another urging to the Secretary of Defense to implement the actions allowed by the 1992 law. The bill points to the following as some of the important reasons why chiropractors are immediately needed in the military:
- Back injuries are the leading cause of lost service time and military disability.
- Combat readiness of military personnel will be improved by offering a non-pharmaceutical approach to health care.
- The cost effectiveness of military healthcare will benefit by taking advantage of conservative, drugless and non-surgical care.
- The widest possible range of healthcare options will be available especially in the area of spine and body structure care.
According to the resolution, the only way that military personnel in the field or on shipboard can access Chiropractic care is through a commissioned Chiropractic officer. For these many stated reasons, the joint resolution of both the House and Senate urges that, “The Secretary of Defense should take immediate steps to establish a career path for doctors of Chiropractic to be appointed as commissioned officers in all branches of the Armed Forces for purposes of providing Chiropractic services to members of the Armed Forces.”