March 8, 2000

PLANNING AND TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE:

City Council, at its meeting held on February 29, March 1 and 2, 2000, referred the following Motion to the Planning and Transportation Committee:

Moved by: Councillor Miller

Seconded by: Councillor Chow

"WHEREAS City Council on October 28, 29 and 30, 1998, by its adoption, as amended, of Clause No. 2 of Report No. 11 of The Emergency and Protective Services Committee, headed 'Holistic Practitioner Licensing Category', and its adoption of By-law No. 806-1998, amended the Licensing By-law No. 20-85, to control the negative consequences of 'body rub' parlours; and

WHEREAS the by-law amendment also applies to certain holistic health practices, such as acupuncture; and

WHEREAS the by-law as written, has the unintended effect of making some standard acupuncture procedures unlawful; and

WHEREAS staff originally intended to report on revisions to this by-law by March 2000, which would have allowed anomalies to be addressed; and

WHEREAS the process required means the report will not be ready for some time; and

WHEREAS there is considerable concern in the acupuncture community regarding this by-law; and

WHEREAS there is no consensus regarding whether the City should be regulating this health profession at all;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT City of Toronto By-law No. 20-85, as amended, be further amended by deleting reference to 'acupuncture' from the list of practices covered under 'Holistic Practitioners' or 'Holistic Centres'; and

AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT staff report further, after consultation with the acupuncture community and the Province of Ontario, an appropriate mechanism to regulate the health profession of acupuncture."

for City Clerk

J.A.Abrams/cg

c. City Solicitor

Executive Director of Municipal Licensing and Standards