Dr. Daniel Royal prepares patient Priscilla Tingley for nutritional therapy as Nevada Institutional Review Board President Dean Friesen supervises. Friesen said the board could make it possible for purveyors of alternative and holistic medicine to flourish in Nevada. Photo by Clint Karlsen.

A new law that makes Nevada the first state to establish an institutional review board for the practice of alternative medicine could bring billions of dollars in health care business to Las Vegas, the board's president said.

Companies that specialize in alternative and complementary integrative medicine, or CIM, would move here and bring thousands of patients from out of state, said Dean Friesen, president of the Nevada Institutional Review Board and a doctor of pharmacology at New Hope clinic in Henderson.

The board was created by Assembly Bill 208, which Gov. Kenny Guinn signed into law in June. Its role is to oversee, review and control research in different methodologies in alternative medicine, holistic therapies that may accompany traditional medical practices. The review board will determine standards for practicing medicine in Nevada and propose regulations that will codify those standards, Friesen said.

Nevada stands to benefit from alternative medicine, Friesen suggested.

"It opens the door for a huge economic impact. Las Vegas is No. 1 as a tourist destination, No. 1 as a shopping destination. The reality is we believe in two years we can make Las Vegas the No. 1 destination for alternative medicine," he said.

Medicine reinvents itself every 20 years or so, Friesen said, and the institutional review board evaluates what should and shouldn't be paid for by insurance companies based on two parameters -- safety and efficacy.

"When people want alternative medicine, they go to Mexico. You have no idea of efficacy and safety there," he said. "Why not have Nevada as the health freedom state?"

Bob Cooper, economic development manager for the city of Henderson, said the new law will create a business environment that few other states have.

Previously, if someone was diagnosed with an illness and the doctor recommended a form of medical treatment that was not covered by insurance, the patient had to leave the state, leave his family and take a long leave of absence from work, Cooper said.

"But now the board can say this does need to be covered, to use this treatment that may have only been available in Florida," he said. "It allows new and different kinds of businesses to operate in Nevada. Some might by homeopathic drug companies or pharmaceutical companies."

Friesen said medical schools have taught doctors traditional treatment practices for prescription drugs and surgery. Nevada is one of the few states to legally license homeopathic physicians and the outcome of AB208 is to determine acceptable standards to research CIM diagnostics, treatments and substances, he said.

Friesen said the seven-member review board has met four times and put together more than 30 pages of rules and regulations during public hearings.

Dr. Warren Evans, president of the Nevada State Medical Association said a major part of the medical community's problem with alternative medicine that few controlled studies have been completed for alternative medicine and homeopathic therapy practices.

"The issue is going to be is anybody going to bring any studies to the board to be reviewed," Evans said. "It's estimated to cost about $800 million to develop a new drug. They're not going to put up that kind of money. They don't have it.

"They're not published, they haven't been evaluated, so it's hard to know what they mean," he said. "Mostly they're hyped by somebody who wants to sell a product. It's difficult for health professionals and the public to decide if these things really work or not. Maybe some of this works and it would be nice to know what works and what doesn't work."