6 May 2011

In February, the UK government’s Department of Health announced that herbalists, including practitioners of Chinese herbal medicine, will be regulated by the Health Professions Council (HPC) from April 2012. Emma Farrant, secretary of the Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine (RCHM), the main professional association for Chinese herbalists in the UK responded, “We are very pleased with this decision. Statutory regulation will ensure that only the most competent practitioners can continue to treat the public. The RCHM has been calling for the proper regulation of herbalists for over a decade and we will work closely with the HPC to ensure a smooth transition to the new system.”

The decision was also welcomed by the Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ACTM), the other UK professional body representing Chinese herbalists. Dr. Huijun Shen, ATCM President appealed for a 'Grandparenting' scheme that would allow those Chinese practitioners, who have practiced safely and legally in the UK for many years, to continue to practice under the statutory regulation.

The announcement constitutes official recognition of herbal medicine. Statutory regulation will allow herbalists to continue to prescribe unlicensed herbal medicines under EU medicines law (Directive 2001/83/EC). This is a similar provision used by doctors and pharmacists to prescribe unlicensed products (or prescribe drugs for off-label indications).

The British Acupuncture Council (BAcC) has written to the Secretary of State for Health expressing its concern about the impact of the decision on acupuncturists. The BAcC is calling for statutory regulation for the acupuncture profession alongside herbal medicine, claiming that statutory regulation of herbal medicine without statutory regulation for acupuncture will create confusion for patients and the general public. Chinese herbal medicine and TCM practitioners who also practice considerable amounts of acupuncture may be statutorily regulated, whereas those who specialise in acupuncture will not be. This may lead to herbal medicine practitioners who provide acupuncture having an unfair competitive advantage in a number of areas, including their ability to be commissioned by the NHS and funded by private health insurance.

Categories: Herbal medicine, Lisa Sherman