In a meeting at the Florida Board of Chiropractic Medicine Thursday the Board in a 4-2 vote (Drs. Melton and Roberts dissenting) refused to rule on the single question before them: Whether dry needling is within Florida’s broad chiropractic scope of practice.
General Counsel of the FCA, Kim Driggers, presented argument from its Petition for Declaratory Statement along with testimony from Dr. Aaron Wiegand, D.C. of Scottsdale, AZ (certified in acupuncture and dry needling and educator of dry needling for ChiroNeedle) as to why dry needling is already in the scope of practice under Section 460.403(9)(1) that allows chiropractors to, “adjust, manipulate, or treat the human body by manual, mechanical, electrical, or natural methods; by the use of physical means or physiotherapy….” (Emphasis supplied).
Despite what was believed to be a simple request that would have resolved the doubts of the many DCs uncertain whether they can perform dry needling and avoid the risk of discipline and costly lawyers, the Board chose to leave the issue undecided.
Both physical therapists and acupuncturists in Florida can perform dry needling.
The Board will review the issue of dry needling again at the November 9, 2023, Board of Chiropractic Medicine meeting in St. Augustine, Florida.