As a Licensed Acupuncturist and former Professor and Clinical Supervisor of Acupuncture, I can assure you that Virginia will put the safety of their residents at great risk by letting uneducated, untrained and unskilled persons insert acupuncture needles. Acupuncture needles are FDA regulated medical devices and should only be used by properly educated, trained and licensed acupuncturists. Dry needling IS acupuncture. 

I have already treated injuries sustained by patients of uneducated, untrained and unskilled physical therapists 'dry needling' in NJ: puncturing of the saphenous vein, median nerve damage, exacerbation of symptoms due to improper needling. 

Licensed Acupuncturist spend thousands of hours in didactic and clinical training and must pass multiple national board certification exams, as well as many accumulating 10's of thousands in student loans.  Allowing the egregious appropriation of this complex and nuanced medical therapy will harm Virgina residents, diminish the true value of Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine and potentially destroy the livelihoods of Licensed Acupuncturists.