Acupuncture Access Gains Momentum in New York State

In a modest, fluorescent-lit clinic on 17th avenue in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, patients line up daily with chronic pain that has lingered for years. Some are truck drivers nursing shoulder injuries; others are resturant workers with back and leg pain from 12-hour shifts on their feet. Manny speak limited English,and some lack health insurance that covers the care they seek: acupuncture.

Cai Bin, a licensed acupuncturist and Chinese immigrant, has operated the clinic since 2012. Originally from a rural village in southern China, he immigrated to New york City decades ago. Over time, he built a practice – and a community – serving working-class immigrants who rely on traditional Chinese medicine as an affordable, culturally familiar alternative to conventional medical care.

in recent years, Cai’s role has expanded beyond the treatment room. He is now one of the advocates for Assembly Bill A622, a New York State proposal that would require all health insurance plans to cover acupuncture services.

“Many insurance companies still don’t cover acupuncture,” Cai said. “If it’s not covered,people have to pay out of pocket. But people with low income or no income can’t afford it. A household of three or four might earn only $30,000 a year. Now, acupuncture has become something only wealthy people can afford.”

One of Cai’s longtime patients, jiang Ming, a Chinese monk who lives in New Jersey, said acupuncture helped him recover after years of antibiotic treatment.

“After being bitten by ticks, my body became stiff and intoxicated,” Jiang said. “Hospitals gave me antibiotics for more than 20 years, and eventually my body couldn’t take it. I threw the medicine away. After that, I went from doctor to doctor and finally found Dr. Cai’s clinic.”

Acupuncture, widely practiced in countries such as china, Korea and Japan, continues to occupy a marginal position in the U.S. health care system. In New York, it was not legally recognized until 1991. As of 2025, three states – South dakota, Oklahoma and Alabama – still do not legally recognize the practice. In many others, private insurance plans o

Published: 2025/12/20 22:51:09