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Atheist Forums › Discussion › Skepticism & Pseudoscience v
Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?

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Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
Aegon Offline Donators
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#21
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
July 29, 2018 at 2:25 pm
My friend has bad sciatica and he claims that seeing a chiropractor has diminished the pain significantly. He also told me that the chiropractor can change the structure of his flat feet. I figure one is more true than the other.
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Pat Mustard Offline
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#22
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
July 29, 2018 at 2:27 pm (This post was last modified: July 29, 2018 at 2:30 pm by Pat Mustard.)
(July 29, 2018 at 6:04 am)TaraJo Wrote: So, since I've started this job, this is something that I've wondered about.

I've been working in health insurance, doing pre-authorizatios; I get a lot of calls, setting up preauth for chiropractic care.  I had previously thought chiropractic care was all bunk.  Admittedly, some of it IS ridiculous and goes heavily into 'woo' territory.  But some of it seems to help.  And we usually seem to be able to cover that (or, at least, apply it to a deductable).  

But once in a while, I get a member calling about accupuncture.  Well, it's my job so I put in the preauthorization request for them and I've seen previous preauthorizations for accupuncture actually get approved.  This surprises me because I see a lot of treatments getting denied because they're "not medically necessary."  Based on what I've seen of it, I can't imagine accupuncture being medically necessary and this specific treatments effectiveness relies entirely on the placebo effect; giving them a sugar pill would do just as much good.  Does anyone know anything about this?

You get the same effect from acupuncture by sitting down with a cuppa tay and some biccies and speaking to somebody sympathetic.

Oh, and probably the main reason why the acupuncture is getting authorisation is because it is cheap (in the short term). Sticking needles in somebody costs less than giving them medicinal drugs or treatments, especially when you (i.e. the insurance company) don't have the pay the much bigger long term costs to the non-effective sham treatment.

There's a long rant I could go on about how insurance should be remutualised, but I won't rant today (Limerick are in the All-Ireland! so for the next few weeks I'm happy).
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The Valkyrie Offline
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#23
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
July 29, 2018 at 2:51 pm
Placebo.

Playing Cluedo with my mum while I was at Uni:

"You did WHAT?  With WHO?  WHERE???"
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Homeless Nutter Offline
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#24
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
July 29, 2018 at 2:55 pm
(July 29, 2018 at 9:57 am)Khemikal Wrote:
(July 29, 2018 at 7:47 am)Jörmungandr Wrote:  Millions of people have experienced the beneficial effects of acupuncture and thousands of scientific studies have concluded that acupuncture is effective for such things as the relief of pain, increasing fertility, treating rheumatoid arthritis, and relieving nausea after chemotherapy.

Wait..what, lol?

I think that one is pretty self-explanatory. Probably a lot of men can't get it up without having needles stuck in their a*ses. Seems like a fitting step up from nipple clamps.
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Minimalist Offline Donators
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#25
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
July 29, 2018 at 4:21 pm
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Brian37 Offline
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#26
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
July 29, 2018 at 4:24 pm
(July 29, 2018 at 6:04 am)TaraJo Wrote: So, since I've started this job, this is something that I've wondered about.

I've been working in health insurance, doing pre-authorizatios; I get a lot of calls, setting up preauth for chiropractic care.  I had previously thought chiropractic care was all bunk.  Admittedly, some of it IS ridiculous and goes heavily into 'woo' territory.  But some of it seems to help.  And we usually seem to be able to cover that (or, at least, apply it to a deductable).  

But once in a while, I get a member calling about accupuncture.  Well, it's my job so I put in the preauthorization request for them and I've seen previous preauthorizations for accupuncture actually get approved.  This surprises me because I see a lot of treatments getting denied because they're "not medically necessary."  Based on what I've seen of it, I can't imagine accupuncture being medically necessary and this specific treatments effectiveness relies entirely on the placebo effect; giving them a sugar pill would do just as much good.  Does anyone know anything about this?

It is only as good as a placebo, if one wants the sugar pill to work, it is still arbitrary if the outcome "seems" to favor it.
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The Valkyrie Offline
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#27
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
August 1, 2018 at 6:25 pm
To be honest,I HAVE “cured” people using acupuncture.

Of course, the needles are actually 12 inch nails and a hammer is also used...

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The Grand Nudger Offline
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#28
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
August 1, 2018 at 6:41 pm (This post was last modified: August 1, 2018 at 6:42 pm by The Grand Nudger.)
Fuck a bunch a sciatica and headaches...I want to know how it makes me virile!  I get a bunch of dick related spam, none of it about needles. This is news to me.
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The Valkyrie Offline
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#29
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
August 1, 2018 at 6:59 pm
(August 1, 2018 at 6:41 pm)Khemikal Wrote: Fuck a bunch a sciatica and headaches...I want to know how it makes me virile!  I get a bunch of dick related spam, none of it about needles. This is news to me.

I also use two inch nails...

🤪

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Anomalocaris Offline
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#30
RE: Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?
August 1, 2018 at 7:02 pm
(August 1, 2018 at 6:25 pm)The Valkyrie Wrote: To be honest,I HAVE “cured” people using acupuncture.

Of course, the needles are actually 12 inch nails and a hammer is also used...

If you stack them right, you can cure two people at once.
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Is there any legitimacy to accupuncture?



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