Legislature(1993 - 1994)
03/01/1993 03:00 PM House HES
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HOUSE HEALTH, EDUCATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES
STANDING COMMITTEE
March 1, 1993
3:00 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Rep. Cynthia Toohey, Co-Chair
Rep. Con Bunde, Co-Chair
Rep. Gary Davis, Vice Chair
Rep. Al Vezey
Rep. Pete Kott
Rep. Harley Olberg
Rep. Bettye Davis
Rep. Irene Nicholia
Rep. Tom Brice
MEMBERS ABSENT
None
OTHER MEMBERS PRESENT
Rep. Jeannette James
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
Confirmation Hearing: State Medical Board appointments
WITNESS REGISTER
JOHN FRANKLIN
7121 Chester Court
Anchorage, Alaska 99504
Phone: (907) 333-2141
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
EDGAR PAUL BOYKO
745 W. Fourth Ave.
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Phone: (907) 279-1000
Position Statement: Dr. Rowen's patient; supported his
confirmation
REP. JEANNETTE JAMES
Alaska State Legislature
State Capitol Building
Juneau, Alaska 99801-1182
Phone: (907) 465-3743
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
JULIA TENISON
P.O. Box 3917
Third Judicial District
Soldotna, Alaska 99669
Phone: (907) 776-5598
Position Statement: Dr. Rowen's patient; supported his
confirmation
RUBY GAEDE
HC3 Box 907
Soldotna, Alaska 99669
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
DR. SANDRA DENTON
4115 Lake Otis Parkway #200
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Phone: (907) 563-6280
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
JIM MILLER
P.O. Box 110935
Anchorage, Alaska 99511
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
PAT HAYES, R.N.
3331 E. Huffman Road
Anchorage, Alaska 99516
Phone: (907) 345-2772
Position Statement: Worked for Dr. Rowen; supported his
confirmation
JUDY COX
6261 E. 41st Court
Anchorage, Alaska 99504
Phone: (907) 333-6363
Position Statement: Worked for Dr. Rowen; supported his
confirmation
W.C. THOMPSON
3601 Twilight Lane
Anchorage, Alaska 99516
Phone: (907) 345-1072
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
JOSEF PRINCIOTTA
330 L St.
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Phone: (907) 346-2582
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
LINDA NEULS
12845 S. Bragaw St.
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Phone: (907) 345-5482
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
DALTRICE BOEHMER
5911 Denali St. Bldg. A1
Anchorage, Alaska 99518
Phone: (907) 563-5782
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
CHRISTY ANN ROGERS
P.O. Box 221524
Anchorage, Alaska 99522
Phone: (907) 333-0414
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
HELENE HENNINGS
1326 LaTouche
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Phone: (907) 279-2919
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
DR. PATRICK NOLAN, D.O.
Chairman of Internal Medicine
Sisters of Providence Hospital
3200 Providence Drive
Anchorage, Alaska 99508
Phone: (907) 561-6100
Position Statement: Opposed Dr. Rowen's confirmation
SCOTT CROWTHER
1726 Bellevue Loop
Anchorage, Alaska 99515
Phone: (907) 349-2198
Position Statement: Supported Dr. Rowen's confirmation
DR. ROBERT ROWEN, M.D.
615 E. 82nd Ave. #300
Anchorage, Alaska 99518
Phone: (907) 344-7775
Position Statement: Appointee
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 93-25, SIDE A
Number 031
CHAIR TOOHEY called the meeting of the House Health,
Education and Social Services Committee to order at 3:35
p.m. She announced the committee would continue hearing
public testimony on the governor's appointments to the State
Medical Board, following the earlier adjournment of a joint
meeting with the Senate Health, Education and Social
Services Committee in the Butrovich Room. Chair Toohey said
the committee would not make a decision on the appointments
at the meeting, but would only take public testimony.
JOHN MICHAEL FRANKLIN, a patient of Dr. Rowen's, testified
from Anchorage supporting Dr. Rowen's appointment. Mr.
Franklin said he had served the Municipality of Anchorage
for years, had been municipal manager and commissioner of
public safety, and was on the board of Chugach Electric. He
read a letter he had sent to Dr. Rowen, which is on file in
the committee room, in which he described the beneficial
treatment of his lung cancer through alternative medicine,
and the acknowledgement from some traditional doctors of
their inability to help him. Mr. Franklin said he is one of
many people who cannot wait for traditional medicine to
embrace alternative medicine.
Number 146
CHAIR TOOHEY noted the committee members present.
EDGAR PAUL BOYKO, a patient of Dr. Rowen's and an attorney
in Anchorage, testified from Anchorage in support of Dr.
Rowen's confirmation. He said orthodox and alternative
medicines should be able to work together, and having Dr.
Rowen on the medical board would help. Having one
alternative medicine representative on the board would help
the cause of choice in health care, and rejecting his
appointment would be unjustifiable, he said.
Number 185
REP. JEANNETTE JAMES testified in Juneau in support of Dr.
Rowen's confirmation, saying that as a representative of the
board, Dr. Rowen would not represent his profession, but the
people of Alaska. She cited public support for Dr. Rowen,
his excellent medical education, and his opposition from
organized medicine. She said Alaska does not generally
consider health care maintenance or prevention, and
rejection of Dr. Rowen would further erode consideration of
such health care strategies. She supported his activities
and his skill as a doctor and asked for his confirmation.
Number 216
REP. B. DAVIS asked Rep. James how Dr. Rowen would deal with
prevention as a board member.
REP. JAMES answered that a board member who supported
prevention would be bound to influence others on the board.
Number 240
JULIA TENISON, a patient of Dr. Rowen's, testified via
teleconference from Soldotna in support of his confirmation,
saying his political beliefs differ for other doctors' but
he does not belittle other doctors. She added that society
should be concerned about insecure doctors who criticize
other physicians.
Number 261
REP. BUNDE asked Mrs. Tenison if she thought there was a
conspiracy of doctors against Dr. Rowen.
MRS. TENISON said some individual doctors do take pains to
paint Dr. Rowen as a fraud.
Number 280
RUBY GAEDE, widow of a Soldotna doctor and a cancer patient,
testified via teleconference from Soldotna in support of Dr.
Rowen's confirmation, saying she supports freedom of choice
in medical care.
Number 300
DR. SANDRA DENTON testified via teleconference from
Anchorage in support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation, saying
there is a growing national interest in alternative
medicine, the people of Alaska are entitled to a choice, and
it is essential to have a doctor on the board who has
studied alternative medicine.
Number 327
REP. BUNDE asked if Dr. Denton had read the statutory duties
of the board.
DR. DENTON answered no.
REP. BUNDE said the committee is not judging the validity of
alternative medicine. He read the six statutory duties of
the board members: to examine and issue licenses to
applicants, to develop reasonable licensing guidelines, to
issue annual reports to the governor, to discipline
violators, to adopt regulations for license renewals, and to
contract out treatment for doctors with drug or alcohol
abuse or mental health problems.
Number 355
DR. DENTON identified herself as the physician reprimanded
by the medical board for ordering a glucose insulin
tolerance test instead of a glucose tolerance test. The
complaint was filed, she said, by a pathologist at an
Anchorage hospital laboratory who refused to do the test.
She said having a doctor versed in alternative medicine on
the board would have afforded her a fairer hearing.
REP. BUNDE recalled that Dr. Rowen would be outvoted by the
majority of conventional doctors on the board.
DR. DENTON said that at least Dr. Rowen could share
information with the other doctors on the board.
REP. BUNDE asked whether the information was available to
all doctors who wanted to see it.
DR. DENTON said it was, but doctors might be unwilling to
look at it.
REP. BUNDE asked whether having Dr. Rowen on the board would
force them to look at such information.
DR. DENTON said it would not force them to look at the
material, but may expose them to information they might not
otherwise see.
Number 375
JIM MILLER testified via teleconference from Anchorage in
support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. He related the story
of how a physician friend of his had gotten angry that Mr.
Miller had written a letter of support for Dr. Rowen. Mr.
Miller said the incident helped him understand the animosity
between the two medical camps. He said Dr. Rowen, as a
public figure, is an easy target for criticism, but he would
like to see a representative of the AMA (American Medical
Association) challenge him directly.
Number 400
PAT HAYES, R.N., a nurse for eight years in Dr. Rowen's
employ, testified via teleconference from Anchorage in
support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. She said he is an
asset to the board, that he is well-schooled in both types
of medicine, and that he can help integrate traditional and
alternative medicine. She noted the national attention on
the appointment.
REP. BUNDE asked if she was still working for Dr. Rowen.
MS. HAYES said she was.
REP. BUNDE said he was glad to get testimony from those with
medical experience, as well as from the general public.
Number 429
JUDY COX, Dr. Rowen's medical office manager, testified via
teleconference from Anchorage in support of Dr. Rowen's
confirmation. She said Dr. Rowen is an honest and dedicated
physician representing a growing number of Alaskans seeking
an alternative to conventional medicine. She said there is
a need for more open-mindedness about medicine, especially
in light of the nation's economic crisis. She said Dr.
Rowen will help protect Alaskans and bring a needed
perspective to the board.
Number 444
W.C. THOMPSON, a 40-year Alaskan, testified via
teleconference from Anchorage in support of Dr. Rowen's
confirmation. He said that health care practices not
approved by the AMA and the Food and Drug Administration are
branded quackery, and the public has no say in the matter.
He said the public needs more information on alternative
medicine.
Number 467
JOSEF PRINCIOTTA testified via teleconference from Anchorage
in support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. He said Dr. Rowen
could help bring new information to a board whose members
might otherwise be cloistered from such information. He
referred to a television program the night before (February
28, 1993) which included information on the medical benefits
of shark cartilage in fighting cancers, which has been known
in Asian healing arts for centuries, but which is just
beginning to be considered by Western medicine.
Number 502
REP. BUNDE said the duties of medical board members did not
include medical education.
MR. PRINCIOTTA said no, but having Dr. Rowen on the board
would bring a fresh voice and new outlook to the board
because he has a wider vision than other doctors.
LINDA NEULS, mother of a 13-year-old son with congenital
birth defects, testified via teleconference from Anchorage
in support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. She said that six
years of daily antibiotic medication through conventional
medicine had caused medical and behavioral problems for her
son that Dr. Rowen was able to alleviate with his treatment.
She called Dr. Rowen an insightful and caring physician and
encouraged his confirmation.
Number 535
DALTRICE BOEHMER testified via teleconference from Anchorage
in support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. She said he and his
alternative viewpoints would not be a detriment to the
board, that he would be the first to recognize whether new
alternative doctors in the state were qualified or not, and
that the state should remain open-minded about medical care.
TAPE 93-25, SIDE B
Number 000
CHRISTY ANN ROGERS, a patient of Dr. Rowen's, testified via
teleconference from Anchorage in support of his
confirmation. She said conventional doctors had failed her
through negligence, lack of information, and lack of
competence while Dr. Rowen had cured her of back and neck
pain with one visit. She expressed anger at doctors who
denounced Dr. Rowen's methods when their own were
ineffective at doing more than treating symptoms.
Number 040
REP. BUNDE asked Ms. Rogers whether she had filed charges
with the medical board if she knew of cases of physician
negligence.
MS. ROGERS said she had not, because while the doctors had
not helped her, she felt they should not be punished because
their medicine had not helped her.
HELENE HENNINGS testified via teleconference from Anchorage
in support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. She said she had
undergone chelation treatment for back pain three times in
her life. She said she believes in both conventional and
alternative medicine, as both have helped her. She said her
husband had been successfully treated with shark cartilage
for a prostate cancer.
Number 130
DR. PAT NOLAN, CHAIR OF INTERNAL MEDICINE AT PROVIDENCE
HOSPITAL, AND FORMER MEMBER OF THE STATE MEDICAL BOARD,
testified via teleconference from Anchorage in opposition to
Dr. Rowen's confirmation. He claimed to speak for the
entire staff of his hospital and for that of Humana Hospital
in Anchorage (now know as Alaska Regional Hospital). He
said he was not questioning the value of alternative
medicine, but Dr. Rowen's appointment to the board. He said
Dr. Rowen lacked support from most physicians, and Dr. Rowen
had called traditional medicine the "sickness industry." He
said Dr. Rowen should not be on the board because he is so
outspoken on medical issues.
Number 168
REP. VEZEY asked Dr. Nolan to clarify his statement
concerning Dr. Rowen's statements about the "sickness
industry."
DR. NOLAN said that Dr. Rowen has said several times that
medicine as it is currently practiced is a pro-sickness
industry. Dr. Nolan said having a doctor who has his mind
made up on the status of the medical industry on the state
medical board is a bad idea.
Number 180
REP. VEZEY asked Dr. Nolan to explain the statutory
requirement that applicants for a medical license in Alaska
have a degree from an institution accredited by the AMA.
DR. NOLAN said there were about 100 medical and osteopathy
schools in the United States, and to practice in Alaska a
person must have an M.D. or D.O. degree, and there is a list
of domestic and international schools approved by the state.
REP. VEZEY asked if a graduate of an AMA-accredited school
could be assumed to have been trained according to the
association's philosophy.
DR. NOLAN stated, "We believe it does in the oath that we
take."
Number 212
REP. BUNDE said he had seen the television show concerning
shark cartilage. He asked Dr. Nolan if he knew of any
Alaska law barring Alaskans from receiving such treatment or
other natural remedies. He also asked whether Dr. Nolan's
view of the board included prevention or encouragement of
public acquisition of such materials.
DR. NOLAN said he believed there should be a standard of
care, which should be set by the medical community. He said
those at Providence Hospital did not believe Dr. Rowen
adhered to the medical community's standard of care.
REP. BUNDE repeated his question about the legality of
natural treatments and the board's role relative to such
remedies.
(Rep. Brice departed at 4:31 p.m.)
DR. NOLAN stated, "...to assist necessarily assist or
regulate the practice of medicine in these matters of
alternative medicine, I don't believe that that's necessary
in most cases. I believe people do have some rights and do
have rights in obtaining the kind of practice and medical
care that they wish. I don't believe that one of the
alternative physicians should serve on the board to judge
and sit as judge and jury for me or any of my colleagues."
Number 246
REP. VEZEY mentioned a recently passed federal law banning
the penning of sharks, which might limit the supply of shark
cartilage.
Number 256
SCOTT CROWTHER testified via teleconference from Anchorage
in support of Dr. Rowen's confirmation. He said the
standard of care described by Dr. Nolan kept him very sick
for years. He described his problem with allergies since
1980, his decade of ineffective treatment from conventional
physicians, and the successful treatment at the hands of Dr.
Rowen, who advised him to have his amalgam tooth fillings
removed, which brought great relief of his allergies and
asthma. He said Dr. Rowen wins approval from patients, if
not from the medical community.
DR. ROBERT ROWEN, APPOINTEE TO THE STATE MEDICAL BOARD, gave
a summary statement to the committee members. He suggested
committee members see the movie, "Lorenzo's Oil." He
disputed Dr. Nolan's statements, saying many doctors at
Providence Hospital do support his appointment, but they
could not say so publicly for fear of peer reprisals. He
described his reference to "the sickness industry" as a
reference not to individual doctors, but to the industry as
a whole. Dr. Rowen said he was as well schooled in
conventional medicine as any physician in Alaska, and could
judge other doctors from their own frames of reference. He
said the appointment controversy was not about him as an
individual, but about rights and symbolism. Dr. Rowen read
from a doctor's book, Racketeering in Medicine, in which the
author asked whether the medical industry was depriving the
public of treatment methods that do not carry the same
potential for profit as alternative methods. Dr. Rowen
expressed a desire to serve on the medical board as a means
to tell other doctors of additional approaches to help
patients. He said that if the committee members did not
confirm his appointment, they would be mortgaging their
health and that of their children.
Number 320
REP. BUNDE asked whether Dr. Rowen had hospital staff
privileges.
DR. ROWEN said all of his practice is out-patient, though he
formerly referred patients to surgery and used other medical
practices when he worked in the Alaska Native Health
Service. He said he was on the staff of Providence
Hospital, but he had been dropped from the hospital's
courtesy staff because he did not admit patients. He had
been on the staff at Humana Hospital, but was removed for
not admitting patients. Dr. Rowen said a doctor's
membership on a hospital staff was not a proper means for
judging competence. He asked the committee members to ask
Dr. David McGuire, who was on the staff at Providence (and
who was a member of the medical board) his opinion of Dr.
Rowen's appointment.
REP. BUNDE mentioned Dr. Rowen's indictment of traditional
medicine for its profit motive and asked whether alternative
physicians were not also motivated by profit.
Number 337
DR. ROWEN said that, in speaking of the profit motive, he
was not indicting individual doctors, but was referring to
the industry as a whole.
REP. BUNDE asked whether there was not an industry producing
herbs, vitamins and natural products, also driven by a
profit motive.
DR. ROWEN observed that everyone is motivated by profit, but
the alternative medical industry was not in a position to
suppress the other side.
REP. BUNDE said the profit motive was the basis of the
country. He chastised Dr. Rowen for attacking traditional
medicine for making a profit.
DR. ROWEN said he did not want to prevent anyone from making
a profit, but said he did not want one side, with help from
the government and regulatory agencies, to annihilate the
other side. He said the entire country was watching the
nomination process.
Number 353
REP. KOTT asked Dr. Rowen whether he was incompetent to
perform any of the six duties of the medical board as
described in statute.
DR. ROWEN said he did not believe so and would not be
undergoing hearings on his nomination if he were.
Hearing no further questions, CHAIR TOOHEY ADJOURNED the
meeting at 4:40 p.m.
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