October 2007

UHC says chiropractic pediatric care is ‘unproven’

A policy change by UnitedHealthcare (UHC), scheduled to take effect this fall, has raised the attention of the American Chiropractic Association (ACA).

According to ACA, UHC notified providers that a review of literature did not show sufficient evidence to support chiropractic care for children or for treatment of headaches.

Specifically, the UHC bulletin said:

“UnitedHealthcare had previously concluded that certain services provided as a part of chiropractic care were unproven. A recent review of the clinical evidence in published, peer-reviewed medical literature leads us to further conclude that chiropractic services for treatment of children and adolescents is unproven and services for treatment of headaches is unproven.”

UHC’s change in policy affects providers who contract directly with UHC, not to providers whose network arrangement has been assigned to the ACN Group, according to Doreen Bell, ACN Group’s director of professional and government relations.

In an e-announcement from ACA’s insurance relations team to members, ACA said it is working with other chiropractic organizations to coordinate a response to UHC, asking it to defend its position. “If UHC is not responsive to this course of action, we will consider all other options available to us, including regulatory or legal recourse,” the announcement stated.

Source: ACA Today, www.acatoday.com

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