Florida Close to Licensing Naturopaths

Florida looks to be the latest state to license naturopathic doctors (NDs), albeit not without serious concerns from medical organizations.

Legislation to license and regulate NDs has moved through the Florida Legislature, passing its Senate floor vote (33 to 3) last week and its House floor vote (85 to 22) on Wednesday.

If this legislation is signed into law, it would enable NDs to “evaluate patients and use natural methods to support their health and wellness,” Todd Robinson, ND, president of the Florida Naturopathic Physicians Association, told MedPage Today.

However, NDs would not be able to “prescribe drugs, perform surgery, practice or claim to practice as an MD or DO, administer ionizing radiation, or manage labor and delivery,” Robinson noted.

The Florida Legislature abolished licensing authority for naturopathic medicine in 1959, and there are currently no NDs licensed in the state. More than 20 other states do offer licensure for NDs, but the process has not been without contention.

The Florida Medical Association did not return a request for comment from MedPage Today. However, major medical organizations have pushed back on “scope creep” and licensure for NDs.

The American Medical Association has argued that NDs are not physicians, stating that “even the most highly educated naturopaths get only a fraction of the training that physicians get,” and “lawmakers should therefore exercise extreme caution when considering legislation that would expand the scope of practice for naturopaths.”

The American Academy of Family Physicians also notes on its website that it “opposes licensure of naturopaths.”

“Naturopathic theory and practice are not based upon the body of basic knowledge related to health, disease, and healthcare that has been accepted widely by the scientific community,” the organization said. “Moreover, the scope and quality of naturopathic education do not prepare the practitioner to properly and accurately diagnose illness or provide appropriate treatment. Governmental endorsement of naturopaths through licensure will jeopardize the health and safety of patients.”

Under state Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, MD, PhD, Florida has tried to push many initiatives that have not sat well with physicians, including a ban on vaccine mandates. Ladapo has also warned physicians in the state not to use mRNA vaccines.

However, Robinson told MedPage Today that the legislation in Florida would help patients and that licensure would “ensure those claiming to be a licensed ND in Florida are properly trained, safe, and effective practitioners.”

Under the new legislation, licensed NDs would have to graduate from a properly accredited naturopathic medical school and pass a licensing examination, Robinson said. The legislation would also create a Board of Naturopathic Medicine within the state Department of Health to regulate the profession and define its scope of practice. Licensees would be subject to disciplinary action should they not comply with the conditions of their licensure.

According to the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, naturopathic medicine exists as a “distinct primary healthcare profession,” and “includes modern and traditional, scientific, and empirical methods.” It emphasizes “prevention, treatment, and optimal health through the use of therapeutic methods and substances that encourage individuals’ inherent self-healing process.”

Treatment by licensed naturopathic physicians could include botanical or fungal extracts, clinical nutrition, counseling techniques, dietary supplements, and homeopathic remedies, according to the legislation, as well as imaging studies, laboratory testing, lifestyle medicine, natural substances, and physical exams or medicine.