Ayurvedic practitioners will be statutorily regulated in the UK!

After years of lobbying and hard work, one of the main objectives of the APA has been achieved: Ayurvedic practitioners will be statutorily regulated in the UK!

The Secretary of State for Health has announced in a Ministerial Statement issued on 16 February 2011 by the UK Department of Health that the Health Professions Council (HPC) has been asked to establish a statutory register for practitioners supplying unlicensed herbal medicines.

The announcement came together with the publication of the analysis report of the 2009 public consultation by the four UK Health Departments, which had sought views on statutory regulation of acupuncture, herbal medicine and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. This report shows that a clear majority (85%) of over 6000 consultation responses were in favour of statutory regulation of these professions. However, according to the Ministerial Statement, the statutory register will only be established for "practitioners supplying unlicensed herbal medicines". Acupuncturists have not been included in the proposal.

Statutory regulation will effectively mean that practitioners supplying unlicensed herbal medicines are considered "authorised healthcare professionals" under EU medicines law. Thus they qualify for an exemption under Article 5(1) of the Human Medicinal Products Directive (2001/83/EC), allowing them to commission unlicensed herbal medicines to meet the special needs of their individual patients.

A formal consultation exercise will take place on specific legislative proposals for establishing the register and proposed reforms of medicines legislation later in 2011. Subject to Parliamentary procedures, the Department of Health aims to have the legislation in place in 2012.

For more details and an outlook on the challenges & tasks ahead while the statutory register is established, please see the APA News Update which will be on our website very shortly.

Kind regards

Ayurvedic Practitioners Association
Representing Ayurvedic Practitioners throughout the UK
info@apa.uk.com
www.apa.uk.com