A Patent on Chinese Medicine

Hong Kong academics patent method to verify herbal medicine's quality

Patent just the tonic for Hong Kong academics: Three academics at Baptist University - assistant professor Dr Han Quanbin, associate professor Dr Chen Hubiao and Dr Xu Jun, senior research assistant at the university's school of Chinese medicine - have invented a convenient and low-cost method to efficiently authenticate the body-strengthening Chinese herbal medicine tiepi shihu. The novel authentication method has been granted a patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office and is being used by a Chinese medicine company in Hong Kong.

Tiepi shihu (Latin name Dendrobium officinale Kimura et Migo) nourishes the stomach, supplements bodily fluids, helps tonify yin, clears heat and strengthens the immune system. Due to its scarcity, the tiepi shihu found in the market may be mixed with other species of shihu or may even be counterfeit.

Insurance Coverage on Acupuncture

Understanding Health Insurance: June 28, 2015 - Medicare, chiropractic care, and acupuncture

Does Medicare cover chiropractic care or acupuncture? Chiropractic care is covered by Medicare, but there are some limitations. If you type "chiropractic care" into the search field on the Medicare website under "is my test, item or service covered?" it will tell you that Medicare Part B covers manipulation of the spine if medically necessary to correct a subluxation when provided by a chiropractor or other qualified provider.

It further informs you that this coverage is extended to all people covered by Medicare Part B. You will pay 20 percent of the Medicare-approved amount after Medicare pays 80 percent of the approved amount, and the Part B deductible will apply if you have not already met it for the year. You will pay the full cost of other services and tests ordered by the chiropractor such as x-rays and massage therapy. Keep in mind, most Medicare supplements pay the 20 percent.

Also be mindful of whether your chiropractor accepts assignment. If he/she accepts assignment, it means he/she can only bill you up to the amount Medicare approved. In this case, you would only be responsible for the 20 percent of the approved amount, and if you have a Medicare supplement that covers the 20 percent, you will be made whole. If your chiropractor does not accept assignment, he/she can bill you up the amount originally charged. In this case, you are responsible for the 20 percent plus the difference between the amount approved, and originally charged. Again, depending on what Medicare supplement you have, this additional amount may be covered.

However, there are limitations which are not so easily defined. It is important to keep an open dialogue with your chiropractor’s office if you do not wish to be surprised by bills at some point. If you have hit against a limitations threshold, the chiropractor may be able to appeal to Medicare and substantiate that you are responding to treatment, but that more sessions are required to achieve the desired goal. Medicare will then review the information and make a determination as to whether or not more sessions will be approved for you.

Acupuncture is not covered by Medicare. If you are Medicare eligible and want to have acupuncture, you can certainly do so. However, Medicare will not cover the cost of the treatment and you can anticipate paying the entire expense out of your pocket.

Betsy Chandler is a licensed insurance professional with MIC Insurance Services, a health insurance services company. If you have questions relative to this column or other related topics, we invite you to call 973-492-2828.

The source of this report is here.

Doctors urge NHI to include Chinese medicine treatments

Doctors urge NHI to include Chinese medicine treatments

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- For patients seeking Chinese medicine treatment on a more regular basis than Western-style medical treatment, cheaper medical bills for overnight surgery may become a reality as a group of Chinese medicine doctors are urging the National Health Insurance Administration (NHI Administration, 健保署) to include Chinese medicine treatment for several major illnesses into the National Health Insurance Program (NHI Program), according to the United Evening News yesterday.

During the initial implementation of the NHI Program, officials considered including Chinese medicine treatments, but later rejected the idea as regulations demand that medical treatment be based on "scientific evidence" for inclusion in the public health system.

According to Liu Lin-yi (劉林義), chief of the NHI Administration, around 7 million patients seek Chinese medical treatment every year. For severe illnesses, patients must either pay around NT$2,300 per night as inpatients for overnight surgery, or are forced to go to the hospital as outpatients on a daily basis, which often involves spending much time waiting in line.

Owing to these factors, a health care campaign group, the Alliance for NHI Program Oversight (民間監督健保聯盟) joined with Chinese medicine doctors to petitioned the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MHW, 衛福部), urging the government to agree to provide financial support for patients undergoing outpatient treatments.

Patients often need treatment for major diseases involved in the program, including cancer, strokes, head injuries, bone fractures, and dementia. "Patients should not be waiting in line everyday just because the medical fee is too high," said Yang Hsien-hong (楊賢鴻), director of the Chinese Medicine Department of Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (林口長庚醫院).

Trial Program Looks to NT$300 Million

According to the United Evening News, the first step is to conduct a trial program at 10 hospitals around the nation. The NHI Program will cover NT$2,500 for each bed. An estimated NT$300 million will be required.

Ko Fu-yang (柯富揚), secretary-general of the National Union of Chinese Medial Doctors' Association, R.O.C. said that this would not only benefit patients, but also the research and development of Chinese medicine treatments, as doctors will be able to train and learn from more clinical practices.

In response, MHW officials said that they will take the petition into consideration once it is received. 

The source of the report is here.

From TV Host to Acupuncture Physicia

TV host Pornsak does acupuncture on dad in quest to be TCM physician

By Charlene Chua

Local TV host Pornsak is now a qualified traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) physician.

He passed his final exams for his bachelor's degree in TCM from the Guangzhou University Of Chinese Medicine last week - seven years after he started the part-time, distance education programme.

Part of the reason he took up the course is because of his 92-year-old dad, Mr Koh Han Ee, who raised him single-handedly after his mother died when he was five.

It was Pornsak's Father's Day gift - he can now tend to his father's health personally.

Nine years ago, his father's left hand started swelling for no apparent reason.

After taking his dad, a businessman, to hospitals in Thailand and Singapore, he still could not find a cure for his swollen hand.

Desperate, Pornsak, 33, sought the help of well-known Singapore TCM physician Chen Mei Er.

He told The New Paper: "At that time, I had taken my dad everywhere.

"Dr Chen, with one needle and using acupuncture, cured my father. It was amazing.

"My dad's hand has not swelled (up) since."

Dr Porn, as his friends like local actress Michelle Chong have affectionately started calling him, can now treat his father's ailments personally.

But learning to become a TCM physician wasn't easy, he said.

- See more at: http://yourhealth.asiaone.com/content/tv-host-pornsak-does-acupuncture-dad-quest-be-tcm-physician#sthash.35nMXGt9.dpuf

A Rare Lawsuit

Acupuncture needle left in man's groin, lawsuit claims

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A Portland man has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $3 million from an acupuncturist he says left two needles in his skin, including one that later broke off and became embedded in his groin.

The lawsuit says acupuncturist Lihua Wang of the China Acupuncture and Herb Center in Portland failed to do pre- and post-session needle counts during an October 2013 appointment, and then didn't inspect Robert Shipp's body for leftover needles before sending him home.

Shipp had gone to the acupuncturist to alleviate pain after an auto accident, his attorney, James Shadduck, said Monday.

Shipp felt the needles in his skin not long after the session, Shadduck said. He removed one of the needles, but the other broke off into a part of his pelvis and has been embedded into the area ever since, completely beneath the surface of the skin.

"He couldn't walk at all using his left leg, the pain so severe, stabbing into a nerve," he said.

The lawsuit filed against the clinic in Multnomah County Circuit Court says Shipp was bedridden for months, still has trouble walking and can no longer work as an arborist. One surgical attempt to remove the needle failed, and he will undergo another procedure next month to try to get it out, Shadduck said.

Wang and another clinic representative referred questions Monday to the American Acupuncture Council, which provides malpractice insurance. Attorney and council Vice President Mike Schroeder said he couldn't discuss the specifics of Shipp's case because of laws regarding medical privacy.

"We are not aware of any proof that the metal object in question is an acupuncture needle," Schroeder said by phone from Southern California. "Since 1986, when the American Acupuncture Council was formed, there has never been a recorded case of an acupuncture needle breaking into pieces.

"You can bend them many, many times and they don't break."

Shadduck says X-rays clearly show a foreign object consistent with an acupuncture needle.

Shipp, 34, is married with three children. Besides $2.5 million for Shipp's pain and suffering, the lawsuit seeks $650,000 for the losses his family faces without a fully functioning husband and father.

The source of this report is here.