Regulations for Practice as a Licensed/Certified Acupuncturist

There are, in essence, two different sets of regulations for those in the acupuncture profession. Thirty nine of the forty states that license acupuncturists follow one set of regulations, while one state, California, follows another. California has its own system for establishing education requirements, accrediting schools, and overseeing a licensing examination process, the California Acupuncture Board. Those completing this process will be designated a licensed acupuncturist with the initials L.Ac. Almost all the other states require acupuncture specialists to have taken the exams of and/or obtained certification from an organization known as the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM). Those with that certification will have been granted the title of a diplomate in acupuncture, designated by the initials Dip.Ac. (NCCAOM). Even with that certification and those initials, different states then grant titles such as licensed acupuncturist (L.Ac. or Lic.Ac.), certified acupuncturist (C.A.), or registered acupuncturist (R.Ac.). Four states grant titles with wording including the term "doctor" or "physician," as in "doctor of oriental medicine" or "acupuncture physician." Unfortunately, California, which accounts for more than one-third of all U.S. acupuncture specialists, does not recognize NCCAOM certification, and only around ten of the thirty-nine other states leave open the option of recognizing California's acupuncture licensing. To become a licensed acupuncturist in California, one must pass two state examinations. In order to qualify to take those examinations, one must graduate from a state-approved instruction program.

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