Homeopath proposal rejected by Nevada lawmakers’ panel

Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2000 | 11:23 a.m.

The vote Tuesday came after lawyers for the state Board of Medical Examiners charged that the regulations went beyond the scope of traditional homeopathy and exceeded the intention of a 1997 law.

The meeting before the Legislative Committee to Review Regulations demonstrated the wide rift between the medical board, which regulates the state's medical doctors, and the Board of Homeopathic Medical Examiners, which regulates homeopaths.

Under the proposals, homeopaths could have offered herbal, vitamin and nutritional treatments, along with "trigger point," "thought field" and many other therapies.

Medical Board lawyer Bob Barengo said homeopaths must confine their practices to a narrow scope of treatment spelled out in state law.

But under the regulations proposed by the Homeopathic Board, he said even chiropractors could become advanced homeopathic practitioners and prescribe controlled substances.

Homeopathic Board President Janie Greenspun Gale argued that the regulations only would ensure homeopaths receive the best possible education before they're licensed in Nevada.

Homeopathy originated in the 1700s when German doctor Samuel Hahnemann found that the body could cure itself of illnesses if patients were given small amounts of the substances that caused their illness.

Assemblyman Greg Brower, R-Reno, advised representatives of the two boards to try to come up with proposals on which they agree. Brower chairs the Committee to Review Regulations.

He joined Assemblywoman Kathy McClain, D-Las Vegas, and Sen. Dean Rhoads, R-Tuscarora, in voting to reject the regulations. Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, and Assemblywoman Genie Ohrenschall, D-Las Vegas, supported the proposals.