North Dakota passes first acupuncture law

The state will require national standards for education and certification examinations.

April 23, 2015 — As a result of the efforts of a small group of dedicated acupuncture and Oriental medicine (AOM) practitioners from the North Dakota Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and proponents of AOM in North Dakota, Governor Jack Dalrymple signed SB 2191 into effect on March 23, 2015, the state’s first law regulating the practice of acupuncture, the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM(R)).

In January 2014, a small group of AOM practitioners held their first meeting to discuss establishing acupuncture licensure in North Dakota.

By Spring 2014, this group of acupuncturists founded the North Dakota Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and promptly began the laborious task of writing the acupuncture practice act.

Later that year, the legislative sponsors joined the initiative and SB 2191 was submitted for consideration.

One of the members of the above group, Steve Spader, Dipl. Ac. (NCCAOM)(R) who, along with others, worked tirelessly on the passage of this legislation said: “Though there have been attempts in the past to introduce a practice act, this time we were blessed with guidance from Beth Allen, ND and other experienced people both locally and nationally.”

“Now that North Dakota has become the 45th state to regulate the practice of acupuncture, this will ensure that its citizens will be better protected and the state will attract acupuncturists who are nationally board certified,” said Kory Ward-Cook, PhD, chief executive officer of the NCCAOM. “When you raise the standards, you attract highly qualified practitioners.”

Acupuncture is one of the oldest, most commonly used medical treatments in the world. It is low-cost, noninvasive, has very little adverse side effects, and has been used with great success for more than 3,000 years.

Today, many patients and doctors consider acupuncture a mainstream integrative treatment.

Source: National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM)