Abstract
Acupuncture licensing requires thousands of hours of training, but the Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners #39; (TBCE #39;s) rules allow chiropractors to perform the procedure and to do so with considerably less training. The Texas Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (TAAOM) is challenging those rules in a lawsuit, saying acupuncture is beyond the chiropractic scope of practice, and TBCE #39;s inclusion of it constitutes a public health risk. The Texas Medical Association filed an amicus curiae brief to support TAAOM #39;s case, citing the limitations on acupuncture practice in the Texas Occupations Code and the large disparity in required training hours between licensed acupuncturists and chiropractors who perform the technique.