Western States Vows Support of Drug Expansion Efforts in Wisconsin

In a letter to Rod Lefler DC, President of the Wisconsin Chiropractic Association (WCA), Dr. Joseph Brimhall President of the University of Western States, offers his institution’s assistance to the chiropractic scope expansion efforts in Wisconsin, including the addition of drugs.

The Wisconsin Chiropractic Association recently announced that it would seek scope expansion in the state to include drugs in a similar fashion as New Mexico by creating two classes of chiropractors and tiering the profession. Those prescribing drugs are called Advanced Chiropractic Physicians.  

Brimhall frames his support for drugs and scope expansion as supporting the “Good of the Patient” and asserts that such expansion would also allow chiropractic "physicians" to help patients avoid “unnecessary drugs and surgery”.  The notion that chiropractors help patients avoid so called “unnecessary drugs” was endorsed by several chiropractic leaders and organizations and incorporated into the Council on Chiropractic Educational Standards two years ago.

This was after the CCE removed “without drugs and surgery” from the definition of chiropractic in the accreditation standards.  The language of avoidance of “unnecessary drugs” was placed in as a compromise and ostensibly to allow the introduction of drugs into chiropractic while still maintaining compliance with the CCE Standards because, unlike medical doctors, chiropractors would only ever prescribe drugs that are necessary.

Brimhall has argued repeatedly for the inclusion of drugs and surgery into chiropractic education, licensing and practice for many years. Most recently he submitted an affidavit to Washington State in support of efforts there to expand the scope. In his affidavit,  Brimhall contends that chiropractors are well trained to provide diagnosis and management of a broad range of human ailments including diagnosing heart problems such as cardiac bruits, inguinal hernias, metastatic bone lesions, traumatic brain injuries and concussions.

Brimhall asserts in his letter to the WCA that those institutions choosing to “restrict” their educational offerings by not including drugs do so based on “dogmatic precepts and/or philosophical tenets” and that such actions “interfere with the needs of patients”.

The University of Western States, while in existence for 100 years, has seen a steady decline in its enrollment in the Doctor of Chiropractic Program over the past several years and the promotion of scope expansion is seen as a way to increase their enrollment.