Is a chiropractor considered a health care provider for medical leave certification purposes?

Chiropractors are considered health care providers in limited circumstances, specifically when their work with a patient includes, in the words of Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) regulations, “treatment consisting of manual manipulation of the spine to correct a subluxation as demonstrated by X-ray to exist.”

In other words, the chiropractor must take an x-ray of the back, and the x-ray and subsequent treatment must relate to subluxation, i.e., misalignment of the spine. If those circumstances are present, then the chiropractor is a “health care provider” for purposes of medical leave certification.