Urge Massachusetts Public Health Committee Members to Schedule a Hearing on S665/H3660

NO LONGER ACTIVE – Bill Not Passed Before Session Ended

Help Get a Hearing Scheduled for Massachusetts S665/H3660, the Consumer Access and Right to Practice Complementary and Alternative Health Care bill

Do you know whether a bill gets heard in committee is up to a select few members of a state legislature? Those few generally include the chair(s) of the committee where a bill was assigned. Do you know that a chair’s decision to add a bill to a hearing schedule, or to let it die, can be heavily influenced by members of the committee and their constituents? It’s true! That’s why we’re asking every MA citizen represented by a member of MA’s Joint Public Health Committee to Take Action to urge their legislators to pressure the committee’s chair members to add S665/H3660 to the schedule for an upcoming hearing.

If you live in one of the districts listed below, or know someone who does, please Take Action now to make sure S665/H3660 gets an opportunity to move through the legislative process.Without a hearing in this committee, the bill will never have a chance of moving out of committee and becoming law this legislative session.

If you live in one of the following areas, you’re represented by a member on the Joint Public Health Committee (and we need you to Take Action here):

Hampshire, Franklin and Worcester (Sen. Joanne Comerford’s District). Consisting of the city of Northampton and the towns of Amherst, Hadley, Hatfield, Pelham and South Hadley in the county of Hampshire; the towns of Bernardston, Colrain, Deerfield, Erving, Gill, Greenfield, Leverett, Leyden, Montague, New Salem, Northfield, Orange, Shutesbury, Sunderland, Warwick, Wendell and Whately in the county of Franklin; and the town of Royalston in the county of Worcester.
Third Essex (Sen. Brendan Crighton’s District). Consisting of the city of Lynn and the towns of Lynnfield, Marblehead, Nahant, Saugus and Swampscott in the county of Essex.
Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex (Sen. Rebecca Rausch’s District). Consisting of the towns of Franklin, precincts 1 to 4, inclusive, and precinct 7, Millis, Needham, precincts A to C, inclusive, I and J, Norfolk, Plainville, Wellesley, precincts B, F, and G and Wrentham, in the county of Norfolk; the city of Attleboro, ward 1, ward 2 and ward 3, precinct A, and the town of North Attleborough in the county of Bristol; and the towns of Natick, precincts 6, 7, 9 and 10, Sherborn and Wayland in the county of Middlesex
Thirteenth Worcester (Rep. John Mahoney’s District) (Committee Chair) – Consisting of Worcester: Ward 1: Precincts 1, 2, 3, 4, Ward 3: Precinct 2, Ward 9, Ward 10: Precinct 1.
Seventh Suffolk (Rep. Chynah Tyler’s District) (Committee Vice Chair). Consisting of Boston: Ward 4: Precincts 8, 9, 10, Ward 5: Sub-precinct 2A, Ward 9: Precincts 4, 5, Ward 12: Precincts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, Ward 21: Precinct 1
Fifteenth Middlesex (Rep. Michelle Ciccolo’s District) – Consisting of Lexington; Woburn: Wards 1, 7
Twenty-ninth Middlesex (Rep. Jonathan Hecht’s District). Consisting of Cambridge: Ward 9, Ward 10: Precinct 3, Ward 11: Precinct 2; Watertown: Precincts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
Eleventh Worcester (Rep. Hannah Kane’s District). Consisting of Shrewsbury; Westborough: Precincts 4, 5.
Ninth Suffolk (Rep. Jon Santiago’s District). Consisting of Boston: Ward 4: Precincts 2, 4, 5, 7, Ward 5: Precincts 2, 10, Ward 8: Precincts 1, 2, 3, 4; Ward 9: Precincts 1, 2, 3.
First Suffolk (Sen. Nick Collins’s District) (Vice chair). Consisting of the city of Boston, ward 1, precinct 15, ward 6, ward 7, ward 13, precincts 3, and 5 to 10, inclusive, ward 14, precincts 2, 4, 5 and 12 to 14, inclusive, ward 15, ward 16, ward 17, ward 18, precincts 1 to 6, inclusive, 13, 15 and 21, all in the county of Suffolk.
Cape and Islands (Sen. Julian Cyr’s District). Consisting of the towns of Barnstable, Brewster, Chatham, Dennis, Eastham, Harwich, Mashpee, Orleans, Provincetown, Truro, Wellfleet and Yarmouth in the county of Barnstable; the towns of Aquinnah, Chilmark, Edgartown, Gosnold, Oak Bluffs, Tisbury and West Tisbury in the county of Dukes; and the town of Nantucket in the county of Nantucket.
Second Hampden and Hampshire (Sen. Donald Humason’s District). Consisting of the cities of Chicopee, ward 7, precincts A and B, ward 8, precinct A, ward 9, precinct A, Holyoke and Westfield and the towns of Agawam, Granville, Montgomery, Russell, Southwick and Tolland, in the county of Hampden; and the towns of Easthampton and Southampton in the county of Hampshire.
Fifteenth Worcester (Rep. Mary Keefe’s District). Consisting of Worcester: Ward 3: Precinct 4, Ward 4, Ward 5: Precinct 3, Ward 10: Precincts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Seventh Middlesex (Rep. Jack Patrick Lewis’s District). Consisting of Ashland; Framingham: Precincts 8, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18
Eighth Bristol (Rep. Paul Schmid III’s District). Consisting of Fall River: Ward 1: Precinct A, Ward 6: Precincts A, B; Freetown: Precincts 2, 3; New Bedford: Ward 1, Precincts D, E, F; Westport
Eighth Worcester (Rep. Michael Soter’s District). Consisting of Blackstone; Millville; Uxbridge; Bellingham (Norfolk Co.)
Third Essex (Rep. Andy Vargas’s District). Consisting of Haverhill: Ward 1, Ward 2: Precinct 3, Ward 3, Ward 4: Precincts 1, 2, Ward 5: Precincts 1, 3, Ward 6.

If S665/H3660 becomes law, Massachusetts would become the 11th state to protect access to complementary and alternative practitioners such as herbalists, homeopaths, traditional naturopaths, Ayurveda practitioners, energy healers, wellness consultants, and many others who are providing great services to health seekers in Massachusetts. Click Here and Enter Your Address to send a message to committee members to support S665/H3660 by scheduling it for a hearing asap.

The new law, already passed in ten other states, would provide a state licensing exemption for non-invasive complementary and alternative health care practitioners who avoid a specific list of prohibited conduct, such as puncturing the skin or administering prescription drugs, and who provide disclosure information to their clients before providing services, such as contact information, education and training, and the nature of the services to be rendered.

What you can do:

1. Take Action here to send a message of support for S665/H3660 to your personal legislators on the Public Health Committee. Please add a brief personal note to have a greater impact with the legislators. Start building a relationship with your personal Senate and House Representatives.

2. Call your legislators to leave a message reiterating your support of S665/H3660. Identify who your legislators are here and use their contact info to leave a message with each office letting them know why you support access to complementary and alternative practitioners.

The message for your personal legislators: “As a constituent of [Senator/ Representative] [Insert Your Legislator’s Last Name] I want [him/her] to know that I support S665/H3660, the “Consumer Access and The Right to Practice Complementary and Alternative Health Care” bill.

Please tell the [Senator/Representative] that I want [him/her] to urge the chairs of the Joint Public Health Committee, Senator Joanne M. Comerford and Representative John J. Mahoney, to schedule S665/H3660 for a hearing and to vote “yes” on the bill when it is eventually heard on the floor of the [Senate/House].”

“S665/H3660 is important to me because [Insert your own brief reason why you support access to complementary and alternative health care (i.e., I depend on complementary and alternative health care for myself and my family and I want Massachusetts law to protect my rights as a consumer to a free and educated choice in health care providers.)] Thank you.”

3. Support your local advocacy team “The Committee for Protection and Access to Complementary and Alternative Health Care”, a project of hfama.org”: a group of practitioners and consumers of complementary and alternative health care that is committed to providing the people of Massachusetts with the options they deserve in pursuit of health and wellness. They are working closely with NHFA to pass S665/H3660 into law. Please visit their website, sign-up for their emails, and consider donating your time, talent, or other resources to support their efforts.

4. When Hearings are scheduled, please plan to attend. Your elected state legislators are interested in your views on proposed legislation. Speaking at a public hearing is an effective way to let them know your opinion. Please stay in touch with NHFA and hfama.org for updates on committee assignments and hearings scheduled for S665/H3660. To learn more about providing testimony, read here.

5. Spread the word about S665/H3660! Please forward this email to your friends and family (especially if they live in one of the towns listed above) so they can Take Action to support access to complementary and alternative practitioners too.

THANK YOU for your commitment to Health Freedom! If you have any questions, please contact us at info@nationalhealthfreedom.org.

Massachusetts Health Seekers deserve to have maximum options protected for themselves as they work to explore their wellness and health. Click Here to Take Action and Support Access to Complementary and Alternative Health Care Practitioners.