Senators seek coverage for alternative therapies

A growing numbers of Americans are seeking alternative medical care, and now an influential group of U.S. senators believes the time has come to embrace an array of alternative therapies. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa is the cosponsor of an amendment that says healthcare plans will not be allowed to "discriminate" against any healthcare provider who has a license issued by a state, an amendment Senate aides said was designed to provide coverage for alternative medicine. Backers of the amendment say it could save tens of billions of dollars in the long run by providing less expensive and better alternatives to drugs and surgery in a variety of cases.