03/31/2020
Vice President Michael Pence
The White House
Office of the Vice President
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW W
Washington, DC 20500
The Honorable Alex M. Azar
Department of Health and Human Services
Office of the Secretary
200 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20201
March 23, 2020
Dear Vice President Pence and Secretary Azar:
On behalf of the American Chiropractic Association (ACA), representing the nationās doctors of chiropractic and the patients they serve, we would like to thank you for your work in combating the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
We want you to know that Americaās doctors of chiropracticāmore than 70,000 strongāstand ready to serve in this national crisis. Along with the Administration and the states, we are committed to eradicating this dreadful disease, which has put much of the world at risk and threatens to overwhelm the U.S. healthcare system.
As portal-of-entry healthcare providers, doctors of chiropractic are educated and licensed to diagnose, treat, and co-manage patients. Our doctors work in private practices, multi-disciplinary clinics and hospitals. They are trained to refer patients to other healthcare providers when necessary. In a healthcare system being stretched to its limit, DCs can be a valuable resource to tap for additional patient support.
Doctors of chiropractic (DCs) are primary-contact healthcare providers who provide essential care, including (but not limited to) managing acute and urgent musculoskeletal conditions. These services are critical for managing cases that otherwise could end up in emergency rooms, worsening an already difficult situation. It is important to note that chiropractic services also keep in place healthcare providers, first responders and others who have physically strenuous jobs that support critical infrastructure, such as truck drivers who continue to ensure that Americaās healthcare and food supplies get to where they are needed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As they provide this essential support, doctors of chiropractic share the public health responsibility of slowing the transmission of COVID-19. Chiropractic practices that attend to urgent cases must employ strict hygienic practices at every point of patient contact and keep up to date with prevention recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition, ACA has urged all chiropractors to closely monitor state and local health authorities and to comply with any relevant guidance or mandates.
ACA is working to coordinate information and guidance from CDC and other credible sources for use by chiropractors around the country. Please consider us a resource and point of contact for the chiropractic profession for your offices. We are prepared to speak in more detail about how members of the chiropractic profession can be of greater service to your efforts and the communities in which they work and live.
Sincerely,
Robert C. Jones, DC
ACA President