Chiropractic Board Reform Bill Passes First Committee Sacramento, CA –Legislation to reform the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners (CBE) passed out of the Assembly Business & Professions Committee on a vote of 10-0, despite opposition from the California Chiropractic Association.  Assembly Bill 1137, authored by Assemblymember Mike Eng (D – Monterey Park), will place a proposition on the statewide ballot to amend the 1922 initiative that created the Chiropractic Board 85 years ago. “The overriding problem with the Chiropractic Board can be summed up in three words – lack of accountability,” stated Eng.  “Unlike virtually every other healthcare licensing board in California, the Chiropractic Board is not subject to any meaningful oversight by the Executive Branch of state government because the Board is not part of the Department of Consumer Affairs,” stated Eng. Recently there have been numerous press accounts detailing "chaos" at the Board of Chiropractic Examiners and "lawless" actions by its members.  On March 28, 2007, the Assembly and Senate Business and Professions Committees conducted a joint oversight and investigative hearing focused on the problems at BCE, ranging from repeatedly violating the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act to improperly attempting to interfere with an ongoing criminal prosecution of a chiropractor accused of the unauthorized practice of medicine. Some of the provisions contained in AB 1137 require that: (1) "protection of the public" be the Board’s highest priority in exercising its licensing, regulatory and disciplinary functions; (2) the Board become part of the Department of Consumer Affairs just like 39 other boards, bureaus, and other entities currently under DCA; (3) the Board shall consist of seven members, five appointed by the Governor (subject to Senate confirmation), one appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly, and one appointed by the Senate Rules Committee; and (4) the Legislature may "reconstitute" the Board (through legislation signed by the Governor). “This is genuine and common-sense reform that is actually good for the chiropractic profession because it recognizes that chiropractors deserve to be treated like all other respected healthcare professionals, including physicians and surgeons, nurses, optometrists, dentists, pharmacists, and acupuncturists,” stated Eng.