Natural therapies stripped of benefits
As many as 17 natural therapies could be stripped of government subsidies amid a crackdown on spending. As part of a review from the Department of Health last year, the government found that none of the therapies reviewed had been proven to work on patients.
According to the Department of Health, the purpose of the review was to ensure natural therapies that are being funded by the taxpayer by means of rebate are, “are underpinned by a credible evidence base that demonstrates their clinical efficacy, cost-effectiveness and safety and quality.”
And the report ultimately found that, “such clear evidence has not been found”.
The 17 natural therapies under scrutiny in the review were:
- Alexander Technique
- Aromatherapy
- Bowen therapy
- Buteyko therapy
- Feldenkrais
- Herbalism
- Homeopathy
- Iridology
- Kinesiology
- Massage therapy
- Naturopathy
- Pilates
- Reflexology
- Rolfing
- Shiatsu
- Tai chi
- Yoga
"In most cases the quality of the overall body of evidence was not sufficient to enable definite conclusions to be drawn about the clinical effectiveness of the therapies," the report says. "For a few modalities (Alexander technique, massage, tai chi, yoga) there was evidence, which was graded as low to moderate quality, that these natural therapies may improve certain health outcomes for a limited number of clinical conditions."
Some private health experts aren’t convinced the government will go through with the cuts however. Dr Ken Harvey, consumer health advocate, told Choice this shouldn’t deter the government for making recommendations to private health funds, “In my view it also means that the public health insurance rebate should not apply to natural therapies until such time as more evidence supports their efficacy."
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