Public Laws Establishing NCCIH

The following are key public laws in NCCIH’s legislative history.

October 1991 — Public Law 102-170 provided $2 million to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish an office and advisory panel to recommend a research program that would investigate promising unconventional medical practices.

June 1993 — Public Law 103-43, the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993, established the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM) within the Office of the Director of NIH. Its purpose was to facilitate the evaluation of alternative medical treatment modalities and to disseminate information to the public via an information clearinghouse.

October 1998 — Public Law 105-277, the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, elevated the status of OAM and expanded its mandate by authorizing the establishment of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). This act amended Title IV of the Public Health Service Act.

December 2014 — An omnibus appropriations bill, the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, was signed by President Obama and included a provision to change NCCAM’s name to NCCIH.

For more information about the NCCIH’s history, visit The NIH Almanac.