Scope of Practice and Prohibited Conduct
The boundary line
Michigan chiropractors diagnose and treat human ailments through adjustment or manipulation of vertebral and other articulations, plus adjunctive procedures allowed by rule. The scope is not a general medical license. Chiropractors may use diagnostic imaging and other assessment tools appropriate to chiropractic, but they may not prescribe legend drugs, perform surgery, or independently manage conditions requiring medical or surgical care.
Prohibited conduct to recognize
- Prescribing, dispensing, or administering prescription drugs outside authorized limited categories.
- Performing surgery or invasive procedures outside chiropractic scope.
- Treating conditions beyond competence or scope without referral.
- Aiding unlicensed practice, fee splitting, or paying for patient referrals in prohibited ways.
- Sexual misconduct, boundary violations, patient abandonment, and practicing while impaired.
- False or misleading advertising, including “cure” guarantees and unearned specialty titles.
- Failing to refer when red flags suggest a medical emergency or non-chiropractic condition.
Worked example
A patient presents with fever, productive cough, and pleuritic chest pain. The chiropractor diagnoses bronchitis, sells a “lung detox” supplement, and delays medical referral. The adjustment may be within chiropractic technique, but diagnosing and treating pneumonia-like illness, and selling a product as a substitute for medical care, are outside scope and can be charged as unprofessional conduct and negligence.
Traps that cost marks
“Holistic” does not broaden the legal scope. “Adjunctive” does not authorize independent medical practice. Training alone does not create authority; the statute and rules control. Referral is not optional when red flags appear.