Wi: vviki: kixkntly in a minting whi:ri; a colli-iaoim-brought in several chiropractic publications from 1 %0's. We found the articles in those publications intriguing. They showed that, 50 years ago, chiropractors were essentially facing some of the same obstacles we face today. Several of the articles highlighted a huge battle the profession was fighting at that time. It was the opinion of many in the profession that chiropractic should be included in a new healthcare policy that was just passed into law in 1965. Some of you may have heard of it. It's called Medicare. We found it interesting that something the profession once thought was so important, and fought so hard for, is one of the very things that have hurt us the most. You would think we could learn from our past mistakes, yet inclusion in a new federal health plan is at the top of many chiropractors' priorities even today. Why do we think chiropractic inclusion into medical plans has hurt the profession? There are many reasons, but the one that has hurt us the most is that, as a result of insurance inclusion. many chiropractors have limited the scope of their practice to the point that they've forgotten why they became chiropractors in the first place. You see, as we perused several of those old publications and read article after article, we never saw one article focus on chiropractors treating pain. The fact is, over the last 50 years, the profession has slowly narrowed its scope of treatment to the musculoskeletal box. Why? Because insurance company executives, who had no idea what chiropractic could do. dictated that those chiropractors who wanted to receive payment from them, limit their scope of practice to only what they would accept. Have you ever read exactly what Medicare's definition of practicing chiropractic is? According to their website this is what chiropractic is: "Manual manipulation for subluxation of the spine is the only chiropractic service that is covered by Medicare. A chiropractor is defined in the Social Security Act as a physician for only one service, manual manipulation or treatment of subluxation of the spine." "One service. Treatment of the spine." Is that really all chiropractic can do? Just one service? Just treat the spine? We have allowed people who have no clue about what chiropractic-can do, tell us how to practice. We've sold our soul for puny reimbursment checks and, today, we find ourselves with entire generations of chiropractors that don't at all understand the true power of chiropractic care. All they know is "one service" to treat musculoskeletal pain. What about you? Do you really know what the profession was founded upon? Do you realize all that chiropractic can actually do to help people and change their lives for the better? Sure, doctors practicing chiropractic in the 60's had their share of challenges, but they were in a much better position to overcome those challenges and uphold chiropractic than many doctors of today are, because they knew the power of chiropractic and they weren't afraid to use it. They didn't limit their treatment to a fraction of its potential so they could get reimbursement from an insurance company; they practiced chiropractic to its fullest potential. Dr. Thomas Owen (Tom's father) didn't become a chiropractor because his neck or back hurt and he wanted out of pain. He became a chiropractor because, when he was a child, chiropractors practiced true chiropractic and saved him from eye surgery by correcting his strabismus (crossed eyes). Then later, in his teen years, a chiropractor saved him from a second surgery that would have removed his intestines, by correcting his severe digestive problems. No, insurance would not have reimbursed the doctors who corrected his vision or restored function to his intestines, but those doctors were more concerned with practicing the art of chiropractic than they were with insurance reimbursement. What about you? Why did you become a chiropractor? How many lives are you going to change by practicing chiropractic as it was meant to be versus treating patients according to insurance guidelines for that S12 insurance check? We would like to admonish you to spend less time learning insurance codes and more time learning what chiropractic is really about, what it was founded upon, and what it can do. More lives will be changed as a result of the latter, including yours. Tom Owen III, President ofAMC, lectures extensively from coast-to-coast to thousands of chiropractors and students annually. He is the author of Chiropractic from a Business Man's Perspective, and has spent the last 25 years in the day-to-day trenches of the chiropractic profession. He lives by his quote that "In the end, all that is left are the lives we 've touched and to what extent they were changed. " Dr. Osborne. a 1989 graduate of Palmer College, ran a successful high volume multiple doctor practice, and is currently Vice President ofAMC, Inc., as well as an author and lecturer. Visit www.amcfamily.com or call (877) AMC-7117for more information. U3I
