SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
from the dietetics-dianetics,-what's-the-difference dept.
The judge noted that the "health coach" was free to offer pro bono advice.
A federal court on Wednesday rejected claims by an unlicensed "health coach" that the unqualified health advice she provided to paying clients was protected speech under the First Amendment.
In rejecting her claim, the court affirmed that states do indeed have the right to require that anyone charging for health and medical services - in this case, dietetics and nutrition advice - be qualified and licensed. (State laws governing who can offer personalized nutrition services vary considerably, however.)
Heather Del Castillo, a "holistic health coach" based in Florida, brought the case in October of 2017 shortly after she was busted in an undercover investigation by the state health department. At the time, Del Castillo was running a health-coaching business called Constitution Nutrition, which offered a personalized, six-month health and dietary program. The program involved 13 in-home consulting sessions, 12 of which cost $95 each.
Under a Florida state law called the Dietetics and Nutrition Practice Act (DNPA), anyone offering such services needs to be qualified and licensed to protect against bogus advice that could cause significant harms. Those qualifications include having a bachelor's or graduate degree in a relevant field, such as nutrition, from an accredited institution; having at least 900 hours of education or experience approved by the state's Board of Medicine; and passing the state's licensing exam.
Del Castillo had completed none of those things. Her only credential for providing health services was a certificate from an unaccredited, for-profit online school called the Institution for Integrative Nutrition. Otherwise, she had a bachelor's degree in geography and a master's in education. [...]
(Score: 5, Insightful) by ilsa on Monday July 22 2019, @03:13PM
The problem is that these quacks cause a ripple effect that hurts people who arn't directly involved.
Look at the anti-vaxxers for example. If these idiots got themselves killed off for their stupidity, I wouldn't bat an eye. But no. It's their children who don't have a choice in the matter who suffer. It's the next door neighbour's infant who is too young to be vaccinated who suffers.
And then there are those who prey on the truely desperate. If you are on the verge of death due to some illness that is causing you incredible amounts of pain, you are by definition not thinking your best. And you will probably listen to someone... anyone... who will give you a shred of hope that you can beat this thing.
I've seen this happen personally, and it makes my blood absolutely boil when I think about it. These people are no different than any other con artist trying to swindle as much money from their marks as they can get, and IMO you can't throw the book hard enough at them.