Chiropractic is a regulated profession in over 50 countries in the world but as of this writing in early May 2014 there is no Act of Congress that legislates the practice of Chiropractic in the Philippines. There has been official recognition of the profession by the Department of Health (DoH) since as early as 2002.
Read more in this article I wrote last year: The Chiropractic Industry in the Philippines – Perspectives From a Chiropractor in Makati, Manila
In 2008 Senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes presented the first Senate Bill on Chiropractic. A chiropractic consultant was brought in from the country that birthed Chiropractic, America, who crafted a fairly comprehensive Chiropractic Act that was to create a Chiropractic Board of Examiners. The process is similar to the acts already passed that created the Board of Examiners for Dentistry, Optometry and Medicine. In 2010 the same bill was resubmitted and yet again in 2013 (SB 993) since there was no activity by the Senate over the previous five years the bill sat in committee.
In 2014 we see an entirely different scenario that will influence the passing of SB 993 because of the organizations that now exist which can support the focus needed to bring this important legislation to the Senate floor, and the following year in the Congress. In January 2014 we saw the launching of the Chiropractic Patients Federation Asia – Philippines (CPFA-P) by people in the community who represent the consumers, the public interest in the chiropractic profession. Then in April the first General Assembly of the Association of Chiropractic Professionals in the Philippines (APCP) was held to open membership enrollment to all the Doctors of Chiropractic that were registered with the DoH through the Philippine.
In late January, the founding members of the APCP met with Senator Trillanes to demonstrate their support for SB 993. The CPFA-P has also been active in reaching out to the Senators in the committee that held a first reading on the bill in 2013 and are engaged in the ongoing collection of signatures for the Petition of Support by other patients. As more collaboration takes place between the APCP members and the CPFA-P leadership, there could be a swelling of petitions prepared for the request to have the hearing for SB 993 held in the coming months.
If you have ever been helped by a Chiropractor and wish to demonstrate your support for the legal formalization of chiropractic in the Philippines, please visit your chiropractor and ask for the petition to sign. If you are on friendly terms with your Senator and / or Congressman, please share your interest on the passing of the Chiropractic Act in their house and solicit their support to vote in favor.
The following websites are of interest for the Senate Bill:
SB 993 can be downloaded HERE
Association of Professional Chiropractors in the Philippines (APCP)
Chiropractic Patients Federation Asia – Philippines (CPFA-P)
Asian Pacific Chiropractic Doctors Federation (APCDF)
World Federation of Chiropractors (WFC)
Chiropractically yours,
docMIKE
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