April 2019 Newsletter
From the Chair of the American Society of Acupuncturists

Dear Colleagues,


We are going to make history for the profession!



Come join your friends and colleagues and earn up to 15.5 PDAs (NCCAOM pending) for this momentous event.



The ASA has put together a phenomenal program for this conference, with national and international leaders who hold insight into our fate as a professional group. Nearly every major organization in the profession will be present either at the top leadership level, or at the highly engaged member level. We currently have 27 states who will be in attendance, though we will be making decisions that will directly affect the whole country. We have a phenomenal exhibitor presence and will open an application for new member benefits. 

While we will study key political factors of which we should all be aware, this conference will be far more than only politics. We will look at how to better serve on behalf of our field in the emerging realm of integrative health.  We will examine how to engage with the military for jobs creation, and how to better interface with insurance so that, ultimately, perhaps all Americans can benefit from our services despite economic status. We will explore how to reach under-served populations, and also how to improve your practice so you yourself can thrive. This conference will work to give you valuable information to be stronger in service, improve your economics, and strengthen the field which is the soil in which you grow.

As well, we will have social events and time for nurturing national collegial relationships, and perhaps for connecting more strongly with those in your own area. 

This is the first ever ASA national meeting, and we intend to make it a historic event. 

The ASA is the most developed, currently best structured platform from which the work of the profession can be accomplished. It is a springboard for advocacy for the common licensure group known federally as “Acupuncturists”. The ASA, as a collective, includes the profession’s leaders who have been directly involved in or responsible for nearly every major legislative and/or regulatory action for the profession for the past 10 years. We are a place for young leaders to develop, and serve as a talent collective for those who care about the profession.

A place for those who are willing to act on its behalf, but within the context of a community vehicle. 

We are gathering our Qi, and determining its focus.

“Acupuncturists”, as a licensure group, have amazing opportunities emerging, and yet are in a place of great danger as a practice, to becoming mainstream and decentralized. 

To survive and be relevant, the profession needs to focus its vision. ASA is a lens for that work. This conference is a powerful tonic to that work. This conference brings us into the professional community.

This conference will teach you about the state of your livelihood. It will make you a more informed consumer, and open your eyes to emerging professional opportunities. It will initiate a new web of relationships upon which we will build in perpetuity. It will teach you to be legislatively powerful. 

This event will be relevant, engaging, and overall incredibly fun. 

You can still help to co-create this experience. 
We need you there.
Early bird ends April 30 th . The room block expires May 9 th .

We look forward to seeing and working with everyone who wants to be a part of this experience.





David W. Miller, MD, LAc
Chair, American Society of Acupuncturists
Come join your friends and colleagues at our inaugural ASA Conference!


This conference is now pending NCCAOM approval for 15.5 PDAs


Early bird rate ends in two days 
The room block expires May 9 th


ASA Inaugural Conference - Your questions for ASA, ACAOM, CCAOM and/or NCCAOM?

Application for ASA Capitol Hill Health Fair
Licensed Acupuncturists or Acupuncture Coordinators
Thank you to our Premier Sponsors
15% discount to ASA members until the end of April.
The discount code is ASAGift





Come check out the official journal of the American Society of Acupuncturists
Monthly Legislative Report
This month, the legislative report is based on an ASA Call for Action! Newsletter sent earlier this month.

Our "asks"

ASK #1
Acupuncture for Our Heroes Act
Sponsor: Rep. Judy Chu
House Ask:  Please Co-Sponsor
Senate Ask:  Companion Bill

Reintroduced this Congressional Session February 13th, the main thing Congresswoman Chu is seeking at this time is Co-sponsors. The more co-sponsors a bill has, the more likely it will get a hearing, CBO Score and eventually pass out of Committee. A recent effort garnered 3 co-sponsors:  Rep. Robin Kelly Robin (D-IL-2 ),  Rep. Yvette Clark (D-NY-9 ) &  Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY- 6).

The Bill was assigned to the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and therefore we will have a particular target of all 28 members of this Committee.

From the Senate, we will ask for a Companion Bill to be Sponsored and Introduced. That can come from any member of the Senate

ASK #2
To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with respect to compounding pharmacies, and for other purposes
Sponsors: Rep. Morgan Griffith
& Rep. Henry Cuellar
House Ask:  Please Co-Sponsor
Senate Ask:  Companion Bill

Reintroduced in this Congressional Session with the original bipartisan sponsors, they are seeking to add as many members from the original co-sponsor list of 62, add more Democrat support and target members of the Committee it was assigned to: House Standing Committee on Energy & Commerce. To date, there are only 6 co-sponsors signed on after introduction on 3/28/19. They are  Rep. Earl L. "Buddy" Carter (R-GA-1 ),  Rep. Jaime Herrera Buetler (R-WA-3 ), Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT-1 ),  Rep. Chris Stewart (R-UT-2 ),  Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL-6 ), &  Rep. Clarke, Yvette D. (D-NY-9 ).

We will be seeking a sponsor for a companion bill on the Senate side.


ASK #3
Congressional Integrative
Health & Wellness Caucus
Bi-Partisan Co-Chairs
Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA-27th)
Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN-2nd)
House ONLY Ask: Join the Caucus

Perhaps the easiest ask of all is to get your Congressman to join the Integrative Health & Wellness Caucus. This is an effort to build a voting block in Congress that consistently seeks out information from organizations that represent practitioners of disciplines that are not currently considered "mainstream medicine".Allow both Representatives words to help inform this "ask".

Please review the ASA Call to Action! Newsletter sent earlier this month. To view, please click here


As always, thank you for all you do!

For more information, contact Kallie Guimond, Director of Government Affairs, Integrative Health Policy Consortium and American Society of Acupuncturists Conference Chair kguimond@ihpc.org
ASA Members: State Associations in Action

WISCA Wisconsin Society of Acupuncture Lobby Day will be May 8
in Madison, WI. 


The Vermont Acupuncture Association is hosting an Acupuncture Oncology Workshop
with Yair Maimon OMD, PhD 

Sun, June 30th & Mon., July 1st, 2019,
9:00am - 5:30pm at the University of Vermont. 

15 NCCAOM PDAs Pending




The Vermont Acupuncture Association welcomes Dr. Yair Maimon. While this well-received course has been offered throughout Europe, this live Acupuncture Oncology course is the first time it is being offered in America! This live Acupuncture Oncology class (along with online component) allows participants to be eligible for an International Oncology Acupuncture Certificate through the TCM Academy of Integrative Medicine. 
This class immediately follows the SAR Conference, also held at the University of Vermont.




SAR's 2019 International Research Conference June 27-29, 2019 | Burlington, VT, USA

Acupuncture Research, Health Care Policy, & Community Health...
Closing the Loop


SAR's 2019 Research Conferenc e will close the information "loop" between acupuncture researchers, clinicians, policy makers, and third-party payers; and continue to provide an international forum for researchers to clarify, strengthen, and disseminate the evidence base and shape the future acupuncture research agenda. This event is co-sponsored by the ASA. 

ASNY congratulates City Acupuncture to a new new office in NYC
 

City Acupuncture of New York celebrates opening a new clinic on 7th Street in the East Village of New York City. City Acupuncture is a collective of acupuncture clinic owners in New York and Los Angeles who operate based on an affordable / community based business model established at their first clinic on Fulton Street in the Financial District of Manhattan, opened by PCOM-NY alumnus Rob Benhuri in 2008. The new establishment at 52 East 7th Street is the second owned and operated by Rob and his business partner, Katie Duffy, also a PCOM alumna. Rob and Katie look forward to bringing affordable, accessible acupuncture and herbs to a new neighborhood, and to providing jobs and abundant clinical experience to new acupuncture school graduates, and to experienced acupuncture and massage professionals in the New York City area.

ILSA’s Sponsored Event
Clinical Application of the Eight Extraordinary Vessels
Offered by Marie-France Collin, L.Ac.


This class is aimed at professional acupuncturists and students who wish to deepen their understanding of Eight Extraordinary Vessels and their applications. Practitioners will have more tools to help patients deal with congenital disorders or ailments passed on in family,
whether physical or non-physical.

Along with teaching at PCOM’s Chicago campus, Marie-France is an instructor for Five Branches University (San Jose, CA) DAOM program. Here are some of her student reviews. Below are the comments from the course she taught in November 2018:

"Dr. Collins is a gifted teacher with a generous heart. I thoroughly enjoyed learning from her."

"Marie France Collins' teaching is always informative and dynamic."
"Collins uses a variety of language strategies to convey the meaning of the complex topics in a variety of ways that connect concepts for comprehensive learning."

Date/Location
May 4-5, 2019
9am-5pm
PCOM, Downtown Chicago

Pricing--the following prices that are listed are for EACH day for this
CEU Event.

Saturday, May 4th
6.5 IL/NCCAOM PDA’s

ILSA Member Early Bird price through April 24th--$135
ILSA Member Regular price --$160
Non-ILSA Member Early Bird price through April 24th--$185
Non-ILSA Member Regular price --$210
Students Price -- $100
ASA Members receive the same pricing as ILSA members
 
Sunday, May 5th
6.5 IL/NCCAOM PDA’s

ILSA Member Early Bird price through April 24th--$135
ILSA Member Regular price --$160
Non-ILSA Member Early Bird price through April 24th--$185
Non-ILSa Member Regular price --$210
Students Price -- $100
ASA Members receive the same price

All New Acupuncture Point Injection Certification
Complete this for your FL License 
JUST DO IT!

TWO COURSE OPTIONS OFFERED:
APIT INTENSIVE (as Requested)

April 12,13,14 and April 26,27,28
or
May 18,19  June 8, 9   June 22,23
 
Study with a Faculty of 5 Specialists

This 60 HOUR Florida Board required course has everything you can imagine:

Theory      Laws and Rules   Medical Errors   Universal Precautions
Differential Diagnosis   Equipment   Practice Management Concepts
Review of Anatomy and Orthopedics   Pathophysiology      
and so much more!
 
 CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO SIGN UP
727.647.0736 CALL or TEXT
Student Payment Plan and 15% FSOMA MEMBER DISCOUNT
On Wed April 10, CTSA sponsored an acupuncture advocacy day at the legislative office of our capitol in Hartford. Four CTSA board members attended, one student, 2 non members, on of whom subsequently joined our association and four other CTSA members volunteered that day.  We provided acupuncture mini treatments to legislators and their staff. We handed out and offered information and publications handouts on the role of acupuncture in helping to solve the opioid crisis, on the many conditions acupuncture can treat and help as well as clarification of the 'myths and facts about dry needling' We spoke with legislators about supporting the inclusion and expansion of acupuncture into our public health system, CT medicaid. 

Other CT news:  1. Due to a complaint made last year by our board about some fraudulent acupuncture advertising on the part of a PT group in CT to our CT Dept of Health, the Dept of Health responded this March requesting more information about the facts regarding standards. In CT there are no set standards for other professions to perform acupuncture or dry needling. The PT's in CT do not have dry needling or acupuncture in their scope of practice. Our DPH responded by sending a request for declaratory ruling to the PT board of Examiners in CT. A public meeting was held by that board on April 12. The conclusion of the preliminary meeting is to do extensive research regarding dry needling, standards before deciding to make a declaratory ruling. Our role as the CTSA will be to help provide information about to both the DPH and the PT board of examiners. There will be more news as this develops, but we going to remain vigilant and as involved as possible in this process.  
ASA Publications
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Top 8 Things
Acupuncture Treats






Opioid Solution
How to Get Involved with ASA
State Association Membership:
There are many avenues to being involved with the American Society of Acupuncturists. To enjoy the full benefits of membership, we encourage Licensed Acupuncturists to join their state association that is a member of ASA. You are considered a member of the ASA at no additional charge. State Associations that are currently members of ASA can be found here . State associations who are interested in membership with ASA may contact our Board Secretary LiMing Tseng at Secretary@asacu.org .

Other Ways to Be Involved:

Licensed Practitioners and Acupuncture Students who are unaffiliated with state associations may receive information about the state and federal regulatory and legislative environments, along with newsworthy announcements about the acupuncture industry by becoming an Associate of the ASA. Options for sitting on the Council, serving on Committees, or voting are not included in this option. For more information, please contact ASA Board Member Dr. Christine Cronin, DAOM, L.Ac at Newsletter@asacu.org . You may also sign up to receive information directly at www.asacu.org.

To Sign Up for Membership & Support Online, Visit Our Website:



American Society of Acupuncturists | 619-847-9613 | Newsletter@asacu.org | www.ASAcu.org