HB2487 was a monopolistic naturopathic licensure bill introduced in Virginia in 2011. The bill would have infringed on the rights of traditional naturopaths and all natural health practitioners to practice their trade and vocations by giving government sanctioned privilege to practice and use of title to one natural health group and criminalizing the rest. Congratulations Virginians for Health Freedom in stopping this bill. and there is much gratitude for your work in stopping a similar bill in 2010. We hope that a safe harbor bill can be reintroduced in Virginia!

In 2008, Virginia Certified Natural Health Care Practitioners (VCNHP) launched a new initiative which they have titled Virginians for Health Freedom. In 2009, the group lobbied against a naturopathic physician licensure bill NP1820, and stopped it from passing. They also introduced HB1744 in 2009, a health freedom safe harbor exemption bill. Diane Miller went to Virginia to testify. However, HB1744 was tabled indefinitely. VCNHP had an urgent challenge in January 2008, when a Naturopathic licensing bill was introduced that would have shut down all traditional naturopaths in Virginia as well as many other natural health care practitioners. VCNHP mobilized the entire natural health community and successfully convinced the legislature to take the bill off the table for the 2008 session.

Diane Miller of NHFA gave a lobbying workshop to VHF in January of 2008 to educate 20 of the VHF leaders about health freedom concepts and provide lobbying training and feedback to grassroots lobbyists. Virginia activists are strong and determined, and we are looking forward to their victory for freedom and natural health.

Sunshine Health Freedom Foundation State Coordinator, Dick Williams, is working hard to support the efforts in Virginia, and has rallied citizens to attend the important hearings. Williams is the head of a National Managers organization for Nature’s Sunshine distributors.

Becky Hanks has lobbied at the state house for years as needed.