The Montana Board Continues to Threaten Public Health and the Integrity of the Chiropractic Profession
Originally published: 2025-04-01
If you thought the saga of chiropractic politics in Montana couldn’t get more absurd, think again. The March 13, 2025 meeting of the Montana Board of Chiropractic has confirmed what many of us have suspected for a long time: the Board, in lockstep with the Montana Chiropractic Association (MCA) and the American Chiropractic Association (ACA), is completely unmoored from reality—and worse, from its statutory responsibility to protect the public.
This meeting was a postmortem on their failed attempt to push House Bill 500, a reckless legislative effort that would have allowed chiropractors to prescribe Schedule IV drugs. The bill was tabled, and rightly so. But instead of taking the defeat as a wake-up call, the Board doubled down, exposing not just ignorance but outright incompetence.
One board member admitted—on the record—that they had no idea Schedule IV drugs include substances like Tramadol, Xanax, Ativan, Darvocet etc until they tried Googling it. Yes, you read that right: one of the chiropractors on the Board who wants to be able to give drugs to his patients was unaware of the basic facts surrounding the very scope expansion they were championing. This wasn't just a slip-up. It was a jaw-dropping admission that proves these individuals have no business writing or influencing legislation that involves prescription drug authority.
“I didn't know in advance and Google didn't help me either. But because in the bill was, or at least the way Mr. or Dr. Oblander put it forth was there was going to be the schedule IV drugs. Well, there's Xanax and some opioid derivatives and stuff in the IV.
The MD’s are being “Aggressive”
And if you thought the circus in Montana chiropractic politics had reached its peak there’s still plenty of absurdity left in the tent. What was meant to be a sober review of the defeat of House Bill 500 quickly turned into a stunning display of ignorance, professional confusion, and anti-medical sentiment. It’s no longer just bad policy. It’s a clear and present danger to public health.
The same chiropractic board member who doesn’t know what a Schedule IV drug is also openly portrayed the opposition from the medical community as "a little more aggressive" because the bill included Schedule IV drugs like Xanax and opioid derivatives like Tramadol. In other words, medical professionals—those trained and licensed to understand, prescribe, and manage pharmaceuticals—had the audacity to resist having their scope hijacked by individuals who didn't even know what drugs were in the bill they were pushing. Rather than recognizing the legitimate public safety concerns raised by physicians, this board member dismissed them as scare tactics and interference.
This type of defensive posturing betrays a deep misunderstanding of professional boundaries. Instead of collaborating across healthcare disciplines for the benefit of patients, the Montana Board is characterizing legitimate opposition as an obstacle to their agenda—an agenda rooted not in competence, but in political maneuvering.
But it gets worse.
The same board member made a jaw-dropping admission:
“I don’t know as if any of us really want to be chronic drug managers for our patients.”
This statement reveals the crux of the problem. They want the power to prescribe medications but are unwilling—or perhaps incapable—of taking on the responsibility that comes with it. Prescribing a drug isn’t a casual act. It’s the beginning of a therapeutic relationship that requires knowledge, follow-up, accountability, and yes—management. To claim otherwise is not just naïve, it’s dangerous.
And then, in perhaps the most chillingly ignorant moment of the meeting, this same individual downplayed the risks of drug use altogether:
“There’s side effects to medications, but a five-day period of those things probably wouldn’t have been a problem.”
This is the kind of thinking that fuels the opioid epidemic. Side effects don’t magically disappear on day six. Drug interactions, allergic reactions, dependency risks, and contraindications exist from dose one—and anyone who is trained to prescribe knows that. The fact that this mindset is being expressed by someone sitting on a regulatory board is terrifying.
This is not about whether drugs are “good” or “bad.” It’s about who is qualified to use them, prescribe them, and manage their outcomes. Chiropractors are not trained pharmacologists. They are not equipped to evaluate, manage adverse reactions, or recognize subtle contraindications that even seasoned medical doctors can struggle with. Suggesting that chiropractors can casually dole out muscle relaxers or steroids “for a few days” is an invitation to disaster.
The Montana Chiropractic Association (MCA) and their national allies at the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) continue to enable this behavior—pushing for legislative overreach under the guise of modernizing the profession. But what’s happening in Montana isn’t progress. It’s malpractice in the making.
Montana’s chiropractic community—and the broader profession—must recognize this for what it is: a coordinated, ideologically driven campaign to dismantle chiropractic's drugless identity and replace it with a watered-down, confused hybrid of medicine-lite. It's an agenda that serves no one—except those who stand to profit from prescribing rights.
The chiropractic profession is at a crossroads. Either we return to our drug-free roots and reclaim our unique identity as spinal and neurological experts—or we allow this toxic fusion with medicine-lite to continue until we become a dangerous caricature of both professions. The Montana Board’s actions should be a wake-up call to every chiropractor, policymaker, and patient in the country.
It’s time to clean house. Before someone gets hurt.
Textbook Case of Regulatory Capture
Adding even more concern, the Board appeared confused about whom they actually serve. Repeatedly, they referred to getting input from their “membership,” blurring the line between the regulatory function of a state board and the agenda of a trade association like the MCA. Let’s be clear: the Board is not there to serve “members”—it’s there to serve the public by regulating the chiropractic profession in the interest of health and safety. The MCA is a private lobbying group. That the Board cannot distinguish between the two is a violation of their public duty and an affront to the regulatory process.
This mess is not in a vacuum. It’s part of a long string of efforts by the MCA and ACA to medicalize chiropractic, push drugs into the profession, and blur the lines between chiropractic and allopathic care. Their goal seems less about improving patient outcomes and more about appeasing their political allies and expanding market share by any means necessary.
Make no mistake: this is not just a turf war. This is a direct threat to public health. Chiropractors are not trained pharmacologists. They are not equipped to manage the complexities and dangers of prescription medications. The mere fact that Montana board members were surprised by the inclusion of Xanax and Tramadol in Schedule IV proves the point.
Montana’s chiropractic community—and the broader profession—must recognize this for what it is: a coordinated, ideologically driven campaign to dismantle chiropractic's drugless identity and replace it with a watered-down, confused hybrid of medicine-lite. It's an agenda that serves no one—except those who stand to profit from prescribing rights and integration into medical structures.
The people of Montana deserve better. The chiropractic profession deserves better. And regulators must be held accountable when they forget who they serve and why they were appointed. The recent meeting was more than an embarrassment—it was a red flag waving furiously in the face of anyone who values professional integrity and public safety.
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