CAMLAW: Complementary and Alternative Medicine Law Blog : Complementary, Alternative, & Integrative Medicine Law, Regulation, Ethics & Policy (Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Medical Spa Information, Holistic Health Attorney, and Legal Resources)

What does this mean? I don't know.  Maybe the cells really do respond.  Actually, how could they not? They're intelligent, they function, maybe they know more than we do - Milton Erickson always sent the part of you that's unconscious is smarter than the part that's conscious.

Still, any claims in marketing materials, including websites, should be vetted by an attorney versed in FTC law, state laws governing false and misleading advertising, licensing laws, and other legal rules.  It's not so much the matter of scientific evidence behind a claim as whether the claim could be considered deceptive to the public.

Speaking of cellular healing:

Cellular health is all about preventative and restorative health care. The human body is made up of 60 trillion cells. Each cell has a specific role in how the body functions. Each cell works very hard and performs an incredible amount of tasks. It is the harmonious collaboration or balance of all our cells that make the human body to work in an optimal way.

When the cell is not in balance, the cell goes into a state of oxidative stress. Disease results when cell function does not work properly. Dysfunction in one cell eventually spreads to others and our whole system is out of balance. Restoring cell balance in some cells directly affects our overall health and well-being.

In the current, conventional model of health care, treatments focus largely on alleviating symtpoms. While this is often very helpful, it is often not adequate to eradicate disease and restore a state of health. This is evidenced by the skyrocketing rates of chronic health ailments like diabetes, cancer, heart disease and many others illnesses.

In short, eliminating disease is not enough to restore a person’s state of health. To date, the primary source of information regarding promotion of cellular health has been the field of Complementary/Alternative Medicine. Yet, why aren’t complementary and alternative medicine modalities discussed in our conventional doctor’s visit?

While alternative medicine is enormously popular, most strategies and cell health supplements are not scientifically researched. And without such research, it is very difficult for complementary and alternative medicine to gain widespread acceptance in mainstream medicine. This lack of research is largely attributable to lack of funding. A great deal of medical research is sponsored by large companies that manufactur pharmaceuticals and therapeutic medical devices. This is not a criticism of this research; but in terms of long term health, it is simply not enough.

Public sentiment, as far as acceptance of complementary and alternative medicine is concerned, remains steady and strong. And sentiment in conventional health care as far as acceptance of alternaive medicine is concened,  is definitely increasing. What can we do to promote more quality research and education in complementary and alternative medicine and in particular the field of preventative medicine?

Raising public awareness is a must. With all that is published in the field of Complementary/Alternative Medicine, there is still a scarcity of scientific research validating, not only its effectiveness, but more specifically, which populations would be most amenable to which products. These are worthwhile discussions we can have with our conventional health care doctors and our natural health providers.

This was reported by "just another business blog."  In other news, CAM has reached ... Boise, Idaho!

Complementary and alternative medicine therapies, including acupuncture, continue to increase in popularity within the United States. In fact, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), about 4 in 10 adults in the United States use some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). The increasing popularity of these therapies has allowed some healthcare providers to buck the trend during the recent economic downturn.

 

One such small business, Acupuncture West, a Boise, Idaho acupuncture clinic, recently relocated to a larger office and more convenient location within the Boise medical community. Still serving the Boise metropolitan area, the acupuncture clinic is now located in very close proximity to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center and the surrounding medical community. The new office includes a total of 4 licensed acupuncturists and 2 massage therapists working collaboratively to help patients get and stay healthy.

 

The acupuncture clinic was outgrowing its previous office space when the business owners started looking for an opportunity to continue growing in a larger space. While searching for new office space, they also met with other CAM healthcare providers to explore the possibility of working more collaboratively and sharing office space. In short order, they found other acupuncturists and massage therapists also looking to grow, and discovered a great office location right near one of the major medical centers in Boise.

 

“With regard to our recent move, many things fell into place for us,” said Peter Games, co-owner of the busy acupuncture center. “This new location allows us to better serve the needs of our growing patient population while providing us a better opportunity to become integrated into the Boise medical community.”

 

Still getting settled in their new location, the business owners seem very excited about the future. “First and foremost, we want to help our patients get and stay healthier,” explained Games. “Yet, it’s especially gratifying when we can also cultivate our business and facilitate its growth and development into an important part of the Boise healthcare community.”

 

Acupuncture West LLC, a Boise, Idaho acupuncture clinic, is owned by husband and wife team Peter and Jennifer Games. Peter and Jennifer have each earned a Master of Science in Oriental Medicine from Southwest Acupuncture College in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They are also each board certified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) as a Diplomate in Oriental Medicine, encompassing acupuncture, Chinese herbology, and traditional Chinese medical theory. In addition, they each hold the title of licensed acupuncturist in the state of Idaho. Peter and Jennifer specialize in the treatment of acute and chronic pain, stress, and women’s health disorders, including infertility. Please visit http://www.acuboise.com/Meet_The_Staff.html for more information about the Boise acupuncturists.

A site on practical magic tries to increase awareness and approval of complementary health therapies:

Alternative and complementary medicine is a huge topic heading that can cover treatments ranging anywhere from the near-absurd to the clinically proven but still not widely practiced. I have been thinking for a while now about how and what to write for the CNN feature. And then last night I got another note from an old friend: his wife, not yet 40, just diagnosed with breast cancer. I get these sorts of messages and calls weekly now, but somehow never grow accustomed to them. I am still shocked every time.

I thought the timing of this last email right as I was developing my article outline was interesting and wondered whether I should write a more focused piece about alternative and complementary medicine and cancer, specifically. Many auspicious healthcare professionals—doctors and researchers among them—have been marginalized because they risked going mainstream with their experiences with and opinions about alternative and complementary care. And the indifference or hostility of the mainstream notwithstanding, 40 percent of Americans use some kind of complementary medicine. It’s a multi-billion-dollar-a-year industry—almost all of it paid for out of a patient’s pocket.

I am convinced that there is a way to cast the issue of complementary and alternative medicine so that it moves forward to take its rightful place in the standard of care in cancer and other major diseases. I was sad a few years ago when I had to jettison the CancerCooperative idea. But you know what? Maybe it’s not so dead after all.

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If you have legal questions concerning telemedicine and telehealth practices, HIPAA legal issues, health care reform questions, or other health law matters in New York, California, Massachusetts, Washington DC, and other states, contact a lawyer who knows the rules.

Consult an experienced health care law attorney who knows complementary medicine and integrative medicine for legal advice pertaining to any project involving allied health or CAM professionals.

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Michael H. Cohen is a health care law and business law attorney providing business legal advice to green entrepreneurs and companies, and health care law advice to businesses and physicians, acupuncturists, naturopathic doctors, homeopaths and others in the holistic health, wellness, and green industries. He works with telemedicine, medical devices, and cutting-edge technologies and gives clear legal advice to grow your business.

As a founding attorney of the Global Vision Law Group, he represents businesses poised for vertical lift, whose leaders are conscious, intuitive, and committed to shaping a better world. Michael also advises medical spas and integrative medicine clinics, physicians, chiropractors, naturopathic physicians, massage therapists, energy healers, nutritionists and herbalists, dietary supplement and cosmetics companies, and businesses with bio-energy and other technologies and medical devices. The website also offers the Entrepreneur’s Legal Toolkit as a series of legal guides to businesses.

See what clients say about his work, visit the Legal Services page for information on business law and healthcare legal services where alternative billing arrangements (such as a flat rate or project fee) can be discussed for discrete projects such as incorporation for entrepreneurs, review and drafting of business contracts, trademark, and package health law services.

Our healthcare law and business law firm also provides special expertise to attorneys and law firms whose clients are involved in wellness industry projects or who require guidance regarding fee-splitting, Stark, anti-kickback, medical board discipline, and other health law and regulatory compliance issues.

To speak with a lawyer about health care law issues pertaining to complementary and alternative medicine, or to consult a business lawyer about laws and legal issues for entrepreneurs and new enterprises that are seeking legal advice, contact the Global Vision Law Group today.