Acupuncture Society of Massachusetts

08/15/2025

Check Out The New ASM Newsletter for August 2025 - https://mailchi.mp/acusocietyma/aug2025-board-newsletter-18248

08/13/2025

For anyone who wants to learn more about the reinstated referral requirements for some of MassHealth plans there are 3 zoom meetings available to coose from:

The MassHealth Business Support Services (BSS) Provider Relations team will be hosting a webinar on the reinstatement of primary care referral requirements as announced in All-Provider Bulletin 403: Ending the Suspension of Primary Care Clinician Plan & Primary Care ACO Referrals and Updating Referr...

07/17/2025

Weidong Lu, MB, MPH, PhD, Lead Oncology Acupuncturist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is our AcuTalk speaker - Hot Flash Study 7/30 - https://mailchi.mp/acusocietyma/july-acutalk-email3-18248504

07/10/2025

ASM AcuTalk 7/30/25 - Hot Flash Study - Attend for prestigious evidence, proven results and actionable insights! https://mailchi.mp/acusocietyma/july-acutalk-email2-18248401

07/01/2025

Our new July AcuTalk - Hot Flash Study - making waves in integrative oncology https://mailchi.mp/acusocietyma/july-acutalk-email1-185278

06/24/2025

We will be testifying today before the joint committee on Healthcare financing:
We have had hearings for both our dry needling and our insurance bills! We have terrific testimony including letters from preeminent professor Ted Kaptchuk, LAc., author of the Web That Has No Weaver and researcher and instructor at Harvard Medical School, and Dr. Joe Audette, MD, who is the former lead at the Harvard Medical School medical acupuncture program.

We Now Need Your Help with the Following...

Writing letters, encouraging your patients to write letters and calling if you are willing. Find your legislator here https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator

Why Must We Go Through This Process 2 or 3 Times?
Because all bills have to go through several committees before reaching the floor for an actual vote. When one committee reports favorably on a bill, it moves to a second committee for approval before it can go for a vote. In other years, our bills have often been stuck in the second committee. We need your help and support to move our bills past this committee and on to a final vote.
Use our Sample Letters and Follow These Steps To Make An Impact

For our insurance bill, H1148 and S834 (summary is further below)
email your legislators and ask them to move these bills
ask them to reach out to the joint financial services committee and ask them to report these bills out of Committee favorably speedily
here is the link to our sample letter H1148 & S834 Letter. You can add your own lived experience and have your patients add a line or two about either how Acupuncture has made a difference in their life or why they want it covered.
For our dry needling bill, H2415 sponsored by representative Carole Fiola (summary is further below)
ask your legislators to contact the joint healthcare financing committee and ask them to report it out of Committee favorably speedily
here is the link for the letter about our dry needling standard bill H2415 DN BILL 2025 Letter. You can add your own lived experience when you send this in.
These letters contain our specific messaging. Please stay on point with the messaging that we have provided.
For Questions Contact

Naomi Alson NaomifAlson@gmail.com 413-243-0654
Amy Mager AmyMagerHealing@gmail.com 413-222-8616
Summary of our Active Bills

Insurance Bill: An Act Relative to the Practice of Acupuncture (H1148 and S834) would mandate insurance coverage under all commercial insurance plans in the Commonwealth for the treatment of pain, PTSD, nausea, and op**te addiction.
Dry Needling Bill: An Act Relative to Safer Treatment H2415 would require specific standards including classroom hours, clinical hours and third party national testing as well as having a doctorate, in order to practice dry needling in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Find your legislator by entering your street address, city/town, and ZIP code. Please note that you can only search addresses within Massachusetts, and that not entering the complete street address, city/town, and ZIP code may result in an inaccurate response.

06/24/2025

We held a successful Acupuncture Day on the Hill- Now We Need Your Help - https://mailchi.mp/acusocietyma/post-hearing1-update-help-call-2025-1824321

06/23/2025

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wwVXTzTYfjVIc48M4KWnXSaY6pRg0M6y/edit?usp=drivesdk&ouid=117990893225531444534&rtpof=true&sd=true

Honorable Chairs, Vice Chairs and Committee Members, The Acupuncture Society of Massachusetts urges you to report Please report H2415 introduced by Representative Fiola, and sponsored also by Senator Collins, (awaiting a late file bill number), An Act Relative to the Safer Treatment of P...

06/23/2025

Thank you to Robert Surabian MAc., LAc & Dr. Amy Mager DACM, LAc  for testifying today in Support of our dry needling standards bill today!  They work together as cochairs for the ASM dry needling committee.

06/16/2025

If you haven’t already, please go to the BORIM LMS Portal to update your information and make sure what they have is accurate so people can find you online and we can find each other. This is new: https://medboard.mass.gov/login-register BORIM LMS Portal

06/09/2025

The Acupuncture society of Massachusetts is so grateful to current student Mollie and New graduate Lace for supporting our Acupuncture on the day today! Thank you also to Lhasa OMS for their contribution of supplies and tools!

06/09/2025

The Acupuncture Society of MA had tremendous day at the People’s House in Boston today! Thank you to Sen Velis and Rep Elliott, champions for S834 & H1148 our insurance expansion bill and to Rep Fiola & Sen Collins for championing our dry needing/AtrP bill H 2415!