California Citizens For Health Freedom

8048 Mamie Ave. Oroville CA 95966

Frank Cuny, Executive Director

Phone (530) 534-9758 Fax (530) 534-5854

What do we do?

We are the voice for citizens in the state capitol who are supporters of The Health-Medical Freedom Movement.  These citizens want access to safe and effective alternative medicine, holistic health services, and natural products.  Following are some of the activities that are part of our legislative advocacy efforts:

·           Conduct educational informational programs for key legislators, their staff, personnel in other state agencies, and organizations that are active in legislative advocacy.

·         Monitor thousands of state bills that are being considered by the legislators.  When appropriate, we issue e-mail alerts so citizens can oppose or support pending bills and coordinator efforts to have speakers support or oppose bills.

·           Develop position papers and testify before legislative committees, the Medical    Board, the Little Hover Commission and to various organizations.

·         Carry out research, write and sponsor bills, and solicit legislators to serve as authors for bills.  

·         Provide information to many organizations so they can be active in The Health-Medical Freedom Movement.

·         Consult and advise physicians and other health care professionals who are facing unfair disciplinary action from licensing boards for providing safe and effective alternative treatment.

·         Assist emerging professional groups in their organizational efforts to gain professional recognition for their profession.

Following are our state legislative issues. 

Issue 1.  We are the lead organization in working to establish and expand the right of citizens to have access to safe and effective alternative medicine including cancer.

Problem:  The current laws, regulations, and discipline practices of the Medical Board were designed to enhance the practice of Allopathic Medicine (drugs & surgery).  By disciplining licensed physicians from offering safe and effective alternative treatments to the allopathic approach of drugs, the state is denying the citizens of California the right to select alternative medical treatment that citizens in other states have.  These include Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Texas, Alaska, New York, and others.

Background: Allopathic medicine focuses is on drugs and surgery.  It is excellent for major medical emergencies and injuries.  This is life saving and important that it be available and supported.  The alternative to allopathic is medicine with a focus on enabling the individual to identify the cause of the problem and work to restore the ability of the individual’s body to heal itself.  Alternative medicine is often the most effective for degenerative diseases.  It is more economical and does not expose the individual to the toxic side effects of drugs.  This is also true in the treatment of cancer.

Solution: Change the restrictive laws and Medical Board policies.  It is our goal to help educate the legislative community, assist the Medical Board to change its policies and to have clear policies from the legislature and/or the Board that would recognize the right of licensed physicians to offer safe and effective alternative treatments without fear of discipline for doing so.

Issue 2.  We are the lead organization in coordinating the efforts to establish the right of women in particular low income and women from different cultural backgrounds to choose to have safe and natural homebirths.  In this effort we have the support of Midwife and other related organizations.

Problem:  The state law as written by the Allopathic Medical Monopoly requiring licensed midwives and certified nurse midwives to have physician supervision agreements to offer natural home births services.  Due to malpractice insurance concerns and bias on the part of physicians, no physician is able to enter into a supervision agreement. 

At the current time:

• Every licensed midwife in California stands to lose her/his license.
• Midwives have difficulty in obtaining the necessary equipment and drugs that are authorized in their scope of practice, because these require a physician’s prescription.
• Parents have to go through an unnecessary bureaucratic process to obtain a birth certificate because of the bias against midwives on the part of The Director of the California Department of Health.
• Many insurance firms will not pay for home births because midwives are not recognized as  primary care professionals like physicians, chiropractors, etc.  Since this includes Medical, there is greater cost to the taxpayer for hospital births and a denial of this service to low-income families that would provide better health of both mother and baby.

RESTRAINT OF TRADE.  Licensed midwives are trained in the process of natural childbirth as a health option for women.  In the training of physicians, childbirth is viewed as medical procedure.  Licensed midwives by law are restricted (as they should be) to working with women who are healthy and good candidates for a natural birth.  For these women natural home birth is the safest and healthiest system of birth for both the mother and baby.  The medical model of childbirth is much more expensive and not part of the cultural tradition of many families.  Due to the economic threat that midwives present to organized medicine the political power of the medical association passes bills to assure that midwives are not recognized as independent licensed professionals.

Solution: Have midwifery recognized legally as an independent profession.

Issue 3.  Oppose monopolistic dangerous dental health practices.  We cooperate with a number of organizations in this effort. 

Problem: The American Dental Association in connection with national industrial interests has supported the concept that the use of mercury (amalgam) fillings is safe.  Mercury in all industries and businesses is outlawed as a dangerous toxic.  The only legal place other than a toxic dump is in the mouths of children, seniors etc.  The dental monopoly also has supported the concept that industrial toxic waste (fluoride) products are legal to put into our drinking water rather than a toxic dump.

 Solution:  Educate the legislators to make these practices illegal.

Issue 4.  Advance the right of citizens to have information and access to alternative health/ medical professionals.  We work with a number of organizations on this goal.  Examples are the licensing of Naturopathic Physicians, making it legal for Colonic Therapist to Practice, Nutritionists etc.

Problem: In California and the rest of our nation, citizens are seeking to have the professional services of individuals to advise them and provide them with health/medical services that are alternative to the current allopathic model.  Citizens should have the right to these professional services and the right to know the level of education and training of the individual offering that service.

Solution: Work with the emerging professional organizations to assist them in gaining licensing or recognized certification to offer their professional services.

Issue 5.  Advance the right of citizens to have full disclosure on the dangers of medical practices and information on the alternatives.  We work with a number of organizations on these issues.

Problem: Organized medicine and the pharmaceutical industry use their economic and political clout to offer services that support their industry even though there are safer and more effective alternatives.  Following are some examples:

·        T he use of mercury in dental fillings.

·        The over-prescribing of psychotropic drugs such as Ritalin to children.

·        The standard practice of the use of long-term prescriptive drugs for mentally ill individuals when the Orthomolecular Medical approach would be more effective.

·        The standard practice of cancer specialists not informing patients of alternatives to chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery.

·        The failure of gynecologists to obey the state law by warning women of the dangers of hysterectomies and telling them of alternatives to hysterectomies.

·        The failure of physicians and government agencies to inform parents

about the nutritional intervention programs for the treatment of Down’s syndrome that can help increases their intelligence.

·        The dangers of some children’s viruses that are not adequately tested.

·        The use of some drugs given to women in childbirth that may be causing autism in children.

Solution: Work to expose the above practices and have the government require physicians to obey the law that would require them to inform patients on the dangers of drugs and medical procedures and what the alternatives are.

Federal Legislative Issues

We assist some national organizations in particular American Association for Health Freedom in developing support for bills in congress such as the Access to Medical Treatment Act – HR 1964 / S 1378.

Who Are We?

We are a non-profit, non-partisan 501-c4 citizens’ organization.

Individuals or organizations wanting to support our efforts are invited to go to our web www.citizenshealth.org for more information.  We send e-mail alerts to our supporters, to receive these send e-mail to [email protected].  Donations are appreciated but are not tax deductible.

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