Further delays in the regulation of CAM in the UK

A report by the steering group on the statutory regulation of traditional medicine practitioners is delayed once more as the UK Department of Health insists on consulting the public for a second time. It is hoped that statutory regulation in the field, which is long overdue, will put an end to the currently incoherent situation and protect the public from unsafe practices. The report recommends that practitioners should have an honours or master’s degree to gain registration, and sets out standards of conduct and performance. It covers traditional medicines such as TCM, acupuncture and Ayurveda but not homoeopathy, aromatherapy or massage. Although it acknowledges the urgent need for regulation, the Department of Health requests another consultation after an earlier one in 2005.

BMJ 2008; 336: 1392.