Expanding Chiropractic Services: NWHSU releases policy recommendations to increase access to CIH for Medicare and Medicaid populations

With the aging U.S. population, it is vital to offer convenient and affordable access to safe and effective care such as chiropractic, acupuncture and massage therapy.

As Congress considers ways to increase access to health care by reforming the Medicare and Medicaid programs, today Northwestern Health Sciences University (NWHSU) released recommendations in its Closing Conservative Care Coverage Gaps in Medicare and Medicaid paper.

NWHSU underscores how expanding Medicare and Medicaid coverage to chiropractic and acupuncture could improve patient outcomes and lower costs.

To advance this, NWHSU is calling for the following changes:

• Expand Medicare and Medicaid coverage to include chiropractic and acupuncture care services
• Remove arbitrary restrictions on the ability of CIH professionals to deliver Medicare and Medicaid covered benefits
• Extend reimbursements to clinical services provided by other health care professionals to chiropractic doctors and licensed acupuncturists
• Expand access to address the ongoing public health crises of opioid misuse and poor pain management
• Realize potential cost savings to both patients and the system by expanding access to chiropractic and acupuncture services within Medicare and Medicaid programs

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