This article is from Acupuncture Today
July, 2009, Vol. 10, Issue 07
By Editorial Staff

During a recent Q&A session of a Presidential Town Hall meeting in St. Louis, one licensed acupuncturist and massage therapist in Florissant, Mo., got to ask President Barack Obama what must certainly be one of the most important questions in the minds of all alternative health practitioners.

Q: I’m a licensed acupuncturist and licensed massage therapist in Florissant. And so…

President Obama: I could use one right now. (Laughter.) My back is stiff. I’ve been working hard.

Q: I’ll be happy to help you. (Laughter.) And this kind of fits into what you were just talking about as far as health care. I’m wondering, as a practitioner of Oriental medicine, knowing that the National Institutes of Health and the World Health Organization have discovered through their studies that alternative medicine often is more cost-effective and very effective, how will alternative medicine fit in your new health care program?

President Obama: Well, look, my attitude is that we should – we should do what works. So I think it is pretty well documented through scientific studies that acupuncture, for example, can be very helpful in relieving certain things like migraines and other ailments — or are at least as effective as more intrusive interventions.

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