Action | Practice of dry needling |
Stage | Proposed |
Comment Period | Ended on 2/24/2017 |
As a citizen of PA with family members in VA, I am incredibly concerned to hear that the state of Virginia is entertaining the idea of allowing Physical Therapists to practice dry needling (which is acupuncture by another name). As a patient of acupuncture for many years, I can tell you that my acupuncturist is trained to work with acupuncture needles and dedicated many years of her life to this training.
If an acupuncturist wanted to start incorporating aspects of Physical Therapy into her practice with only a weekend workshop or two, PTs would be outraged. Yet now Physical Therapists are asking to perform acupuncture with little to no training. That seems completely ridiculous to me and I can tell you that I am deeply concerned about the safety of my family members in Virginia and their neighbors who could receive acupuncture (by another name) from a PT.