Palmer Joins Keiser & National Chiropractic Medicine Programs in Opposing Removal of "CCE Only" Language in Florida

In a Florida House Health Quality Sub-Committee hearing on a Bill to remove "CCE Only" language from the Florida statute, Peter Martin DC, President of Palmer's Florida Campus and representing Palmer University, stated:

"This Bill we are in opposition to. It would muddy the waters. The USDOE recognizes only one accreditor for a profession. Just one. Not two. Not three. One."

The Bill, introduced by Representative Santiago as a "monopoly busting" bill seeks to remove archaic and monopolistic language in the Florida statute that gives sole power to the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE) to decide who gets a chiropractic license in the state of Florida.

When the CCE was granted recognition by the United States Department of Education in 1974 the CCE and the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards set out to change the statutes in each state to make the CCE the only accrediting agency that would allow graduates to gain licensure.

Now at least 25 states, including Florida, support this Cartel's monopoly control over the educational, licensing and regulatory functions of the entire profession. Other states allow for any agency recognized by the Department of Education.

Palmer's claim that the USDOE recognizes only one accreditor per profession is false. In fact, during the tumultuous 2013 hearing before the USDOE where they were considering not renewing the CCE's recognition due to over 4000 complaints filed against them, Committee member and Vice Chair of the Committee Arthur Keiser asked Christopher Kent DC, JD:

"DR. KEISER: Why don't the folks who do not like CCE establish their own accrediting commission?"

How convenient that since that time Keiser started a school of Chiropractic Medicine in Florida which has recently been accredited by the CCE. Keiser joins National College's Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine Program and Palmer in setting up schools in Florida.

Several complaints have been sent to the CCE over their recognition of Chiropractic Medicine programs and have asserted that such actions are in violation of their scope of recognition with the USDOE.

In that same hearing, USDOE Committee member and attorney Arthur Rothkopf also urged the profession to bring forth another accrediting agency:

"MR. ROTHKOPF: This is really the second time we've heard this dispute come before us at least in my relatively short tenure, and my guess is that if this motion passes we may have this again three years from now. And, frankly, I don't look forward to it. I would suggest there were some who spoke who were asked or identified the fact that they were thinking about setting up a separate organization, and that is true in many of these fields where there are differences of philosophy.

. . . but it may be appropriate that rather than trying to fight this battle here they might want to think about the idea of setting up an organization which is more reflective of what their philosophy is and so we don't have to -- and it's not just from our time but from everyone else's time and strain that we not -- that everyone not have to go through this in three years."

Martin stressed the extent of Palmer's coalition with Keiser and National's Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine programs in his testimony:

"Quite frankly, this is a bill in search of a problem. And I represent one of the collegs in the state of Florida. Dr. Wiles who will be up here represents another. And you have a letter from National College of Chiropractic which has the third campus in Florida. We see nothing wrong with what exists. It works. It works well. Its worked well since 1974 serving the public."

The Bill passed the House and moves on to the Senate today April 1, 2019.

CLICK HERE for a video of Martin's Testimony

Here is the complete text of Palmer's testimony by Peter Martin DC.

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Thank you madam chair. I appreciate being here today to represent Palmer College of chiropractic and its Florida Campus.

The Florida campus was established in 2002 and currently we are at over 800 students in enrollment at our Port Orange Campus. The main campus in Davenport Iowa was established in 1897. We've been around.

I've been around too. I've been a chiropractor for 51 years. And I was there in 1974 when the Council on Chiropractic Education was recognized as the sole accreditor for chiropractic education.

It was a seminal moment in the history of my profession. We could have standards that applied to all schools, that could be adopted by all states to guarantee quality in education with practitioners who will apply their craft among the public.

This Bill we are in opposition to. It would muddy the waters. The USDOE recognizes only one accreditor for a profession. Just one. Not two. Not three. One.

They were very clear about that in 1974 when another possible accreditor was trying to get recognized by the DOE. They said no. We'll only recognize one accrediting agency for a profession.

Mr. Ebert just passed to me that the named in statute is the American Osteopathic Association, the Council on Chiropractic Education, The Council on Podiatric Education of the American Medical Podiatric Medical Association and the American Optometric Association all named in statute.

Quite frankly, this is a bill in search of a problem. And I represent one of the collegs in the state of Florida. Dr. Wiles who will be up here represents another. And you have a letter from National College of Chiropractic which has the third campus in Florida.

We see nothing wrong with what exists. It works. It works well. Its worked well since 1974 serving the public.

I'd just like to read a bit of the letter that I submitted to you. An identical letter was also submitted to by the Chancellor of Palmer College of Chiropractic Main campus in Davenport.

I quote. The state licensing board also serving as a specialty accreditor underserves the public interest in that its staff is not appropriately trained, credentialed or resourced to serve as program quality reviewers as a specialty accreditor. This legislation will open the door to practitioners in the state of Florida who may graduate from programs not appropriately accredited by the CCE.

This proposed legislation should not be supported.

This is a bill that would not only the colleges, the three colleges in the state of Florida but would affect all 18 educational programs for chiropractic in the country and would affect also all 50 state licensing boards.

It would put the profession in a state of disarray that we experienced well before 1974. Madam Chair, we don't want to go back there. We're happy with things the way they are.

Thank you for your time.