Major Win for Chiropractic Patients Across the Mitten State
Last week, House Bill 4002, legislation that would amend the Earned Sick Time Act to change the terms under which employers would be required to provide paid sick time to employees, passed the Michigan House of Representatives by a 67-38 bipartisan vote. Thanks to the quick action of the MAC’s Government Relations team, the version of the bill that passed the House contains language favorable to chiropractic patients.
As introduced, the bill would have redefined “health care professional” in the law to “health care provider,” as that term is defined in Section 101 of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Under the FMLA, chiropractors are considered health care providers only when the treatment provided consists of manual manipulation of the spine to correct a subluxation, as demonstrated by an X-ray. The Government Relations team recognized that this would shut out many chiropractic patients who see their chiropractor for conditions outside of the narrow FMLA definition and worked to make changes to the bill as introduced.
On January 23, 2025, in a hearing of the Michigan House Select Committee on Protecting Michigan Employees and Small Businesses, state Rep. Jamie Thompson (R-Brownstown) (pictured) offered an amendment to ensure that Michigan chiropractic patients who seek care for conditions outside the narrow constraints of the FMLA are not excluded.
The amendment changed the definition of “health care provider” to ensure that chiropractors as defined by Michigan’s chiropractic scope of practice can provide the documentation necessary for an employee to use earned sick time under the bill. It was approved by a 15-0 committee vote.
This is the version of the bill that passed the Michigan House last Thursday.
This is a major win for chiropractic patients across Michigan! Requiring an x-ray and only allowing chiropractors to provide the documentation for earned sick time for spinal conditions would have increased costs in the health care system and inconvenienced patients, who would have been forced to see an MD or DO for documentation for a condition legally being treated by their chiropractor under Michigan’s chiropractic scope.
Other Provisions of House Bill 4002
Many MAC members who own their practices that employ Michigan workers have been very concerned about the upcoming implementation of the Earned Sick Time Act (set to come into effect on February 21, 2025), which would require small businesses (defined as one that employes 10 or fewer employees) to provide 40 hours paid, plus 32 hours unpaid, of earned sick time. If ESTA becomes effective as currently constructed, Michigan employers – including chiropractic practices – face onerous administrative hurdles and increased costs moving forward.
Importantly, the version of HB 4002 passed by the Michigan House would exempt small businesses (those with 50 or fewer employees) from compliance under the Act, providing relief for the vast majority of chiropractic practices across the state.
The bill would also clearly define employees (exempting independent contractors), allow for “frontloading” of time off, and further clarify the many discrepancies and inconsistencies in ESTA.
Moving Forward
It must be noted that the passage of House Bill 4002 is only the first step in this process, as the bill now moves to the Michigan Senate for consideration. As the two chambers are controlled by different parties, it is likely that the current version of House Bill 4002 will not be the final version moving forward. The MAC Government Relations team stands ready to ensure that the rights of chiropractic patients and the physicians who serve them are protected.
