The Coalition for Natural Health

UPDATE

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COLORADO

Representative Jeanne Labuda, D-1, introduced House Bill 1192, the “Naturopathic Medical Licensing Act” on January 30, 2007 and referred to the House Committee on Health and Human Services. The Coalition immediately opposed the bill. It was heard quickly by the committee and passed by a vote of 10-1 on February 15, 2007. At the hearing, it became apparent that the chair of the committee, Representative Anne McGihon, D-3, was a staunch advocate for the bill. Recognizing that killing the bill in the House was going to be difficult, The Coalition started lobbying the Senate as well as the House Committee on Appropriations, the next stop in the process for the bill. The bill was scheduled to be heard by the House Committee on Appropriations on March 9, 2007, but the bill was laid over at the sponsor’s request. CNH believes that the vote was very close and the bill could have failed so the sponsor did not want to risk losing the bill. The following week, March 16, 2007, the House Committee on Appropriations voted by voice vote to send HB1192 back to the House Committee on Health and Human Services for further deliberations.

Talks heated up on all sides to see if a compromise could be reached. However, the proponents of the legislation never offered a reasonable compromise. CNH mounted an aggressive grassroots campaign to stop HB 1192. The bill was scheduled to be heard on Monday, April 9, 2007 and was expected to pass out of committee, but grassroots’ efforts over the weekend turned the tide and members of the committee who had previously voted for the bill started to change their minds. By Monday afternoon, rumors started circulating that the bill was not going to pass out of committee. About 3:00 pm, HB 1192 was postponed indefinitely by the committee—killing the bill for the 2007 legislative session. Work is already under way by the proponents of the bill to introduce a bill in 2008. The Coalition will monitor activities for the remainder of 2007.

ILLIINOIS

The Illinois Legislature entertained a couple of restrictive licensing bills this year. House Bill 498 was introduced by Representative Angelo Saviano, R-77, and Senate Bill 22 was introduced by Senator Jacqueline Collins, D-16. House Bill 498 was amended on March 21, 2007 and passed out of committee. However, the amendment removed all relevant sections to the bill. The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Rules for consideration. SB 22 was never heard in the Senate and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Rules. On a different note, House Resolution 416, a resolution calling for the study of “naturopathic medical licensing” was introduced by Representative Saviano and appears to be moving. The resolution is on the House floor awaiting consideration. If the resolution passes, we will monitor the activities of the study. In addition, The Coalition expects licensing legislation to be active again in 2008.

MASSACHUSETTS

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has a unique legislative system, in that, citizens can approach a legislator and ask them to introduce a bill and the legislator must introduce the legislation. Yet again, two restrictive licensing bills have been introduced in the General Court. Senate Bill 1321, a bill to register naturopathic doctors, was introduced by Senator Marc Pacheco, D-First Plymouth and Bristol, and House Bill 2225, a bill to register naturopathic doctors, was introduced by Representative Denise Provost, D-27th Middlesex. The bills are currently before the Joint Health Care Financing Committee. The Coalition continues to oppose these bills and will monitor their progress through the General Court, and we expect activity to continue through 2008.

MINNESOTA

The state of a thousand lakes is back in the natural health legislative debate after many years. House Bill 1724, a restrictive licensing bill, was introduced by Representative Neva Walker, DFL-61B. Boyd Landry, CNH Executive Director, attended and provided testimony in opposition to the bill to the House Committee on Health and Human Services Licensing Subcommittee in March of this year. The legislature has adjourned for this year and will reconvene in February of 2008. The Coalition will continue to monitor actions on the bill.

MISSOURI

Missouri had a flurry of activity in 2007. There were two bills and one concurrent resolution that dealt with the restrictive licensing of naturopathic medicine. House Bill 640 was introduced by Representative Bob Dixon, R-140, House Bill 905 was introduced by Representative Bryan Stevenson, R- 128, and House Concurrent Resolution 35 was introduced by Representative Tom Dempsey, R 18. The Coalition opposed all three pieces of legislation, and they did not pass. We expect the legislation to be reintroduced in 2008 for consideration by the legislature.

NEW YORK

The Coalition has again been active in New York with three bills introduced that would provide for the licensure of “naturopathic physicians.” Assembly Bill 4966 was introduced by Assembly Member Sam Hoyt, D-144, Assembly Bill 5176 was introduced by Assembly Member Nick Perry, D-58, and Senate Bill 2790 was introduced by Senator Kenneth LaValle, R-1. The Coalition opposed the three bills and continues to monitor their progress. SB 2790 passed the Senate Committee on Higher Education in February and was sent to the Senate Floor for action. The bill failed to be heard before the legislature recessed for the year and was referred to the Senate Committee on Rules. The Coalition has just learned that the legislature will be returning to Albany for a couple of special sessions over the next two months, but SB 2790 is not expected to be one of those issues considered. However, we will continue to monitor the actions of all three pieces of legislation for the remainder of this year and 2008.

NORTH CAROLINA

North Carolina has been a hotbed of activity this year with four pieces of legislation being introduced. The legislature is expected to adjourn later this summer. Senate Bill 1080, introduced by Senator Eleanor Kinnaird, D-23, and House Bill 969, introduced by Representative Dewey Hill, D-20, are restrictive “naturopathic medical” licensing bills. Both bills have been assigned to their respective policy committees and, to date, have not had hearings. The Coalition is opposed to theses bills and will continue to monitor them.

On a brighter note, health freedom legislation is on the legislative agenda for this year in the form of House Bills 1358 and 451, both introduced by Representative Earline Parmon, D-72. HB 451, which calls for a joint legislative study of complementary and alternative medicine, has passed out of committee and is awaiting approval by the full House of Representatives. We are optimistic that this bill will make progress this year. The Coalition will be there to help in any way that we can.

TENNESSEE

The Tennessee State Legislature entertained two identical restrictive licensing bills this session. Senator Tim Burchett, R- 7, introduced Senate Bill 236 and Representative Sherry Jones, D-59 introduced House Bill 1176. Both bills were assigned to policy committees in their respective chambers but were never heard in committee and eventually died when the legislature adjourned. The Coalition expects similar legislation to be introduced in 2008.

DELAWARE

Delaware is the newest state to enter the health freedom debate. A special interest group has succeeded in moving a dietitian licensing bill through the legislature and the Governor subsequently signed the bill into law. However, before final passage, Boyd Landry, Executive Director, spent weeks in the state working with legislators and negotiating amendments. The Coalition partnered with citizens of the state, state organizations, and other national organizations to see this through. House Bill 38, as passed, by Representative Pam Maier, R-21, restricts the usage of “dietitian” and “nutritionist,” but provides an exemption for herbalists, retailers and other persons to make recommendations regarding lifestyle as well as sell, market, and distribute natural health products. The Coalition is very pleased with the outcome of this legislation.

TEXAS

The Texas Legislature only convenes for regular session in odd numbered years. There were several pieces of legislation introduced this year—both favorable and unfavorable. In the unfavorable category, Representative Myra Crownover, R-64, and Senator Leticia Van de Putte, D-26, introduced identical restrictive licensing legislation for dietitians. The bills failed to pass the legislature and it is expected that this legislation will return in 2009. The Coalition was neutral on House Bill 1942, a bill to license clinical nutritionists, introduced by Representative Bill Zedler, R-96, but it also failed to pass the legislature.

On a positive note, The Coalition watched with anticipation as Representative Frank Corte, R-122, introduced House Bill 3056, a bill to regulate certain complementary and alternative health care services. In April, the bill was heard by the House Committee on Government Reform, but a vote was never taken and the bill was left pending in committee when the legislature adjourned in May. We are hopeful that this bill will make further progress in 2009, and The Coalition will be there to assist in any way that we can.

OHIO

In 1995, a real friend of natural health freedoms, Representative Lynn Wachtmann, R-75, introduced House Bill 148—The Ohio Consumer Health Freedom Act. We support the passage of this bill and are assisting the Ohio Health Freedom Coalition in its effort to pass it. The bill remains alive until the end of the 2008 legislative session. The Coalition will monitor actions on the bill and continue to support its passage.

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		UPDATE Click here for Alerts COLORADO Representative Jeanne Labuda, D-1, introduced House Bill 1192, the “Naturopathic Medical Licensing Act” on January 30, 2007 and referred to the House Committee on Health and Human Services. The Coalition immediately opposed the bill. It was heard quickly by the committee and passed by a vote of 10-1 on February 15, 2007. At the hearing, it became apparent that the chair of the committee, Representative Anne McGihon, D-3, was a staunch advocate for the bill. Recognizing that killing the bill in the House was going to be difficult, The Coalition started lobbying the Senate as well as the House Committee on Appropriations, the next stop in the process for the bill. The bill was scheduled to be heard by the House Committee on Appropriations on March 9, 2007, but the bill was laid over at the sponsor’s request. CNH believes that the vote was very close and the bill could have failed so the sponsor did not want to risk losing the bill. The following week, March 16, 2007, the House Committee on Appropriations voted by voice vote to send HB1192 back to the House Committee on Health and Human Services for further deliberations. Talks heated up on all sides to see if a compromise could be reached. However, the proponents of the legislation never offered a reasonable compromise. CNH mounted an aggressive grassroots campaign to stop HB 1192. The bill was scheduled to be heard on Monday, April 9, 2007 and was expected to pass out of committee, but grassroots’ efforts over the weekend turned the tide and members of the committee who had previously voted for the bill started to change their minds. By Monday afternoon, rumors started circulating that the bill was not going to pass out of committee. About 3:00 pm, HB 1192 was postponed indefinitely by the committee—killing the bill for the 2007 legislative session. Work is already under way by the proponents of the bill to introduce a bill in 2008. The Coalition will monitor activities for the remainder of 2007. ILLIINOIS The Illinois Legislature entertained a couple of restrictive licensing bills this year. House Bill 498 was introduced by Representative Angelo Saviano, R-77, and Senate Bill 22 was introduced by Senator Jacqueline Collins, D-16. House Bill 498 was amended on March 21, 2007 and passed out of committee. However, the amendment removed all relevant sections to the bill. The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Rules for consideration. SB 22 was never heard in the Senate and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Rules. On a different note, House Resolution 416, a resolution calling for the study of “naturopathic medical licensing” was introduced by Representative Saviano and appears to be moving. The resolution is on the House floor awaiting consideration. If the resolution passes, we will monitor the activities of the study. In addition, The Coalition expects licensing legislation to be active again in 2008. MASSACHUSETTS The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has a unique legislative system, in that, citizens can approach a legislator and ask them to introduce a bill and the legislator must introduce the legislation. Yet again, two restrictive licensing bills have been introduced in the General Court. Senate Bill 1321, a bill to register naturopathic doctors, was introduced by Senator Marc Pacheco, D-First Plymouth and Bristol, and House Bill 2225, a bill to register naturopathic doctors, was introduced by Representative Denise Provost, D-27th Middlesex. The bills are currently before the Joint Health Care Financing Committee. The Coalition continues to oppose these bills and will monitor their progress through the General Court, and we expect activity to continue through 2008. MINNESOTA The state of a thousand lakes is back in the natural health legislative debate after many years. House Bill 1724, a restrictive licensing bill, was introduced by Representative Neva Walker, DFL-61B. Boyd Landry, CNH Executive Director, attended and provided testimony in opposition to the bill to the House Committee on Health and Human Services Licensing Subcommittee in March of this year. The legislature has adjourned for this year and will reconvene in February of 2008. The Coalition will continue to monitor actions on the bill. MISSOURI Missouri had a flurry of activity in 2007. There were two bills and one concurrent resolution that dealt with the restrictive licensing of naturopathic medicine. House Bill 640 was introduced by Representative Bob Dixon, R-140, House Bill 905 was introduced by Representative Bryan Stevenson, R- 128, and House Concurrent Resolution 35 was introduced by Representative Tom Dempsey, R 18. The Coalition opposed all three pieces of legislation, and they did not pass. We expect the legislation to be reintroduced in 2008 for consideration by the legislature. NEW YORK The Coalition has again been active in New York with three bills introduced that would provide for the licensure of “naturopathic physicians.” Assembly Bill 4966 was introduced by Assembly Member Sam Hoyt, D-144, Assembly Bill 5176 was introduced by Assembly Member Nick Perry, D-58, and Senate Bill 2790 was introduced by Senator Kenneth LaValle, R-1. The Coalition opposed the three bills and continues to monitor their progress. SB 2790 passed the Senate Committee on Higher Education in February and was sent to the Senate Floor for action. The bill failed to be heard before the legislature recessed for the year and was referred to the Senate Committee on Rules. The Coalition has just learned that the legislature will be returning to Albany for a couple of special sessions over the next two months, but SB 2790 is not expected to be one of those issues considered. However, we will continue to monitor the actions of all three pieces of legislation for the remainder of this year and 2008. NORTH CAROLINA North Carolina has been a hotbed of activity this year with four pieces of legislation being introduced. The legislature is expected to adjourn later this summer. Senate Bill 1080, introduced by Senator Eleanor Kinnaird, D-23, and House Bill 969, introduced by Representative Dewey Hill, D-20, are restrictive “naturopathic medical” licensing bills. Both bills have been assigned to their respective policy committees and, to date, have not had hearings. The Coalition is opposed to theses bills and will continue to monitor them. On a brighter note, health freedom legislation is on the legislative agenda for this year in the form of House Bills 1358 and 451, both introduced by Representative Earline Parmon, D-72. HB 451, which calls for a joint legislative study of complementary and alternative medicine, has passed out of committee and is awaiting approval by the full House of Representatives. We are optimistic that this bill will make progress this year. The Coalition will be there to help in any way that we can. TENNESSEE The Tennessee State Legislature entertained two identical restrictive licensing bills this session. Senator Tim Burchett, R- 7, introduced Senate Bill 236 and Representative Sherry Jones, D-59 introduced House Bill 1176. Both bills were assigned to policy committees in their respective chambers but were never heard in committee and eventually died when the legislature adjourned. The Coalition expects similar legislation to be introduced in 2008. DELAWARE Delaware is the newest state to enter the health freedom debate. A special interest group has succeeded in moving a dietitian licensing bill through the legislature and the Governor subsequently signed the bill into law. However, before final passage, Boyd Landry, Executive Director, spent weeks in the state working with legislators and negotiating amendments. The Coalition partnered with citizens of the state, state organizations, and other national organizations to see this through. House Bill 38, as passed, by Representative Pam Maier, R-21, restricts the usage of “dietitian” and “nutritionist,” but provides an exemption for herbalists, retailers and other persons to make recommendations regarding lifestyle as well as sell, market, and distribute natural health products. The Coalition is very pleased with the outcome of this legislation. TEXAS The Texas Legislature only convenes for regular session in odd numbered years. There were several pieces of legislation introduced this year—both favorable and unfavorable. In the unfavorable category, Representative Myra Crownover, R-64, and Senator Leticia Van de Putte, D-26, introduced identical restrictive licensing legislation for dietitians. The bills failed to pass the legislature and it is expected that this legislation will return in 2009. The Coalition was neutral on House Bill 1942, a bill to license clinical nutritionists, introduced by Representative Bill Zedler, R-96, but it also failed to pass the legislature. On a positive note, The Coalition watched with anticipation as Representative Frank Corte, R-122, introduced House Bill 3056, a bill to regulate certain complementary and alternative health care services. In April, the bill was heard by the House Committee on Government Reform, but a vote was never taken and the bill was left pending in committee when the legislature adjourned in May. We are hopeful that this bill will make further progress in 2009, and The Coalition will be there to assist in any way that we can. OHIO In 1995, a real friend of natural health freedoms, Representative Lynn Wachtmann, R-75, introduced House Bill 148—The Ohio Consumer Health Freedom Act. We support the passage of this bill and are assisting the Ohio Health Freedom Coalition in its effort to pass it. The bill remains alive until the end of the 2008 legislative session. The Coalition will monitor actions on the bill and continue to support its passage. \| Naturopathy Map \|
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