SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 7
1. WHEREAS, musculoskeletal conditions are responsible for approximately 50 percent of all health-related military disability discharges and the most common non-traumatic cause of functional impairment during military operations; and
WHEREAS, chiropractic services often are used to treat musculoskeletal conditions, and Congress established chiropractic benefits and services for both active duty military within the U.S. Department of Defense and for veterans within the Veterans' Affairs health care systems; and
WHEREAS, doctors of chiropractic practice are in nearly 50 military treatment facilities, primarily testing musculoskeletal conditions and slowly are being added to the VA health care system; and
WHEREAS, there currently is no enterprise coordinating and guiding collaborative research efforts between preeminent chiropractic colleges, scientists, and the military researchers to address the primary questions surrounding integration of chiropractic into military health care environments; and
WHEREAS, to meet this need and to establish a robust, collaborative, national chiropractic military research agenda, Logan College of Chiropractic and the Samueli Institute are proposing a partnership to create a new consortial Chiropractic Center for Military Research; and
WHEREAS, the center will be located on the Chesterfield, Missouri, campus of Logan College, with research operations conducted by the Samueli Institute, Alexandria, Virginia; and
WHEREAS, the center will conduct scientifically rigorous research on the application of chiropractic manipulation in the military, including what subpopulations and environments realize the most benefit and how chiropractic can best integrate into the military health care team; and
WHEREAS, the center will facilitate development of research capacity in the area of musculoskeletal conditions by linking scientists at chiropractic educational institutions with scientists in the military and at the Samueli Institute; and
WHEREAS, the center will focus special, priority consideration on those musculoskeletal conditions that are affecting those active duty military and veterans participating in or returning from combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, including the role of chiropractic manipulation in the total care of those with amputations and prosthetics:
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the members of the Missouri Senate, Ninety-Third General Assembly, First Regular Session, the House of Representatives concurring therein, urge the United States Congress to consider establishing the Chiropractic Center for Military Research at Logan College of Chiropractic; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Missouri Senate be instructed to prepare properly inscribed copies of this resolution for the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the President of the United States Senate, and each member of the Missouri Congressional delegation.