Landmark Legislation Passes In The Texas Senate

The Chiro.Org Blog


SOURCE:   Texas Journal of Chiropractic


The Texas Chiropractic Association reports that on Thursday, April 14, 2011, the Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 1001. Says the Texas Chiropractic Association:

“This landmark legislation is significant for two reasons: It allows chiropractors to form professional associations with medical doctors, and it ensures that chiropractors will be treated fairly by insurance companies that decide to cover services that can legally be provided by chiropractors and other types of practitioners. …We have been trying to pass this type of legislation for more than 20 years.”

The Senate Journal reflects that “Senator Carona offered the following amendment to the bill”:

These amendments include:

“A COLLABORATION BETWEEN PHYSICIANS AND CHIROPRACTORS. a person licensed under Subtitle B, Title 3, and a person licensed under Chapter 201 are authorized to: (1) collaborate with each other in providing services to a client ….”

Title 3 is the Health Professions portion of the Occupations Code.

Subtitle B relates to Physicians.

Chapter 201 of Subtitle C relates to Chiropractors.

“ASSOCIATIONS.

(a) a person licensed under Subtitle B, Title 3, and a person licensed under Chapter 201 of this code may form a partnership, professional association, or professional limited liability company according to the requirements of this section and any other applicable law.(b) When persons licensed under Chapter 201 of this code form a professional entity with persons licensed under Subtitle B, Title 3 of this code, as provided by this section, the authority of each practitioner is limited by that practitioner’s scope of practice, and a practitioner may not exercise control over another practitioner’s clinical authority granted by the other practitioner’s license, either through agreements, bylaws, directives, financial incentives, or other arrangements that would assert control over treatment decisions made by the practitioner.(c) The state agencies exercising regulatory control over professions to which this section applies continue to exercise regulatory authority over their respective licenses.(d) A person licensed under Subtitle B, Title 3 of this code, who forms a professional entity under this section shall report the formation of the entity and any material change in agreements, bylaws, directives, financial incentives, or other arrangements related to the operation of the entity to the Texas Medical Board no later than the 30th day after the entity is formed or the material change is made.”“If physical modalities and procedures are covered services under a health benefit plan and within the scope of the license of a chiropractor and one or more other type of practitioner, a health benefit issuer may not:

(1) deny payment or reimbursement for physical modalities and procedures provided by a chiropractor if:

(A) the chiropractor provides the modalities and procedures in strict compliance with laws and rules relating to a chiropractor’s license; and(B) the health benefit plan issuer allows payment or reimbursement for the same physical modalities and procedures performed by another type of practitioner; (2) make payment or reimbursement for particular covered physical modalities and procedures within the scope of a chiropractor’s practice contingent on treatment or examination by a practitioner that is not a chiropractor; or

(3) establish other limitations on the provision of covered physical modalities and procedures that would prohibit a covered person from seeking the covered physical modalities and procedures from a chiropractor to the same extent that the covered person may obtain covered physical modalities and procedures from another type of practitioner.”

The amendment was adopted, the Senate Journal reports, with “all members … deemed to have voted ‘Yea'” with the exception of one absent-excused Senator. The bill passed to the third reading by a vote of 30 yeas and 0 nays. On final reading the bill passed the Senate 30 to 0 with one senator excused-absent.

The TCA reports that “Dallas state Sen. John Carona deserves our thanks and praise for successfully guiding SB 1001 through the Senate. … SB 1001 now goes to the Texas House, where it must also be approved.”

Review the text of the final Senate Bill 1001

The House is noted as having received the bill from the Senate on April 15, 2011.