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Professional Liability Insurance May Be A Don't Need

• So is it really smart to practice without professional Liability insurance?

• Why then do all professional organizations offer professional liability to members?

• What if I get sued by an unhappy client?

These are three of the “most asked” questions we hear from practitioners, and while it is an unfortunate truth that anyone can sue anyone else for pretty much any reason, there are several factors that come into the equation, depending on how your practice is structured. While we do not have room in this brief article to really do justice to this big question, we would like to offer this simple thought. Keep in mind that we are not attorneys and you should always discuss legal concerns with an attorney.

With that said, consider this: For the traditional naturopath, operating under “secular” authority (as in health freedom provisions) or lack thereof in States that do not make secular provision for health freedom, we suggest it is probably “not smart” to operate without professional liability protection. In this scenario it makes sense to buy a few hundred dollars a year worth of peace of mind, with the message being; when you play by secular rules, follow secular standards!

On the other hand providing services under the certification and licensure of a religious organization such as SMOKH invokes a whole different set of rules; rules that first and foremost must be in accordance with the Word. In SMOKH’s case, practitioners are not considered to be providing services in a doctor/practitioner to patient/client relationship; services are considered a “sharing” of natural health. This interpretation removes some of the thinking that there exist a “liability” one to the other, as is in accordance with the Word each is responsible for his or her own decisions and actions (personal responsibility). Because even the Church must not turn a blind eye to the fact that we live in a very litigious society, practitioners and members must “contract”, through informed consent, full disclosure, and the terms of private expressive association to follow scripturally valid practices in the resolution of any disagreement, and we clearly specify those steps in our agreements. The exclusive recourse for unhappy members is arbitration. To “sue”, or take the complaint judicial is to “breach” this contract. As far as we can tell “contract” law has been held valid and enforceable in all U.S. States and as many superior courts have upheld, courts have limited ability to “judge” religious activities. We operate exclusively as a religious organization because it is our sincerely held belief that the authority over natural health is God, he is after all the author of the human instruction manual!

The bottom line is, it seems that donating a few hundred bucks annually to an insurance company makes a lot of sense if you are a secular practitioner playing by secular rules, and little sense if you operate under well structured agreements and Christian personal responsibility such as offered through SMOKH certification and licensure. Truth is, for such religious credentialed individuals, seeking secular liability insurance might be a contradiction to what they stand for, and complete disregard for their commitment to personal responsibility.

Legal Status of Traditional Medicine and

Complementary/Alternative Medicine:

A Worldwide Review by the World Health Organization

A Special Message from the Chancellor of WONMP
November 3, 2009

Read News Article

We are pleased to announce that the University of Natural Medicine (UNM) has joined the WONMP family of accredited educational institutions.

UNM is a State licensed university with offices in Santa Fe, New Mexico & San Dimas, California. Staff may be reached at 800-893-3367.

We encourage all individuals interested in a higher level of learning experience, to consider this well established provider. All coursework is approved for WONMP certification and licensure programs. Graduates from UNM studies are also eligible to apply for award of the esteemed ND(M) degree awarded by the Sovereign medical Order of the Knights Hospitallers.

I feel a responsibility to share truth, to give the uninformed a “heads up”, a “profile” of what killed Michael Jackson. Farah’s death is a whole different story for a whole different but no less important article, but Michaels passing can serve to save the lives of the millions that are on their way to join him in death because his personality is the personality of many millions. Michael won’t be giving live concerts but in death he can remain an icon nevertheless…..

Keep Reading

A most excellent query by Professor McWilliams. 

A must read....

WONMP Has “Done it Again”!

If you have been a WONMP member for the last year or so, you have witnessed first-hand the many opportunities and benefits we have brought to our public as well as practitioner members.  And we are not through delivering, not even close….

In our on-going mission to find ways for practitioners to prosper and at the same time keep prices affordable for the needy, we have negotiated an opportunity for our membership with the largest discount medical provider in the U.S.

For practitioners, in the face of insurmountable odds, and in a world that understands only State licensing and malpractice insurance, we have arranged for WONMP credentialed practitioners to stand alongside 70,000 conventionally licensed medical providers delivering wellness care to the millions that seek discount medical services. This is a groundbreaking “first” for natural health practitioners. With this large medical provider the general public can simply click a link to find a provider in their own town, and they will find many. If they seek natural medicine though, they will likely only find YOU, the local WONMP listed practitioner.

But, not all practitioners will qualify
as a provider at this initial stage

After lengthy negotiation, eligibility is initially limited to those practitioners that are credentialed through us under our natural health certification and licensure program. If you have not yet considered upgrading to licensure, this recent development is a “heads up” that you should. While we cannot lower standards for certification or licensure, we are going to discount the course price for 60 days and assign a tutor to help as many practitioners upgrade to licensure as possible. Click the link above for details!

For our Public Members this discount medical plan is your answer to affordable medical, dental and natural health services. Health practitioners under the plan are required to discount your services a minimum of 30%, and many go even further up to 85% in some cases. The plan even comes with a discount medication card that you can use at multiple pharmacies in your own hometown. In addition to a wide range of medical services available at a discount, many hospitals provide discounts as well, and, the program even comes with a 24 hour advocacy hotline to help you locate affordable services when you need them, at discounts you can afford. This is the best of the best and the best part is, there are no insurance companies involved to take away your benefits!

For Practitioners and Public Members alike, this is also an opportunity for you to take advantage of the current economic downturn, and earn excellent income by offering sales of this excellent plan to others. Practitioners interested in earning steady income from this plan, whether a provider or not, should email us for information. In fact, practitioners do not sign-up for the plan without talking to us first. It will be a missed opportunity!

Watch our website for more information and forms to “sign-up” coming in the next few days, and if you just can’t wait – you are welcome to email us for more information now!