Due to the government regulations, only PHD's can actually prescribe herbs or alternative medicine as treatment. A practicing herbalist would have to be a dr.
How convenient. Correct me if I'm wrong. There are schools, you can get a degree, but that doesn't give you a license to practice.

PHD's have no more ability to prescribe anything than non-phd's. My father has a phd in building design or something like that, he cannot prescribe anything.
I would imagine that it varies from place to place, and that some people just make it up. The creationist Kent Hovind claims to have a doctorate in education, in reality he went to a diploma mill in Arizona and did not even finish his thesis, but still he makes the claim.

You might be interested in this article on herbal education from the American Herbalists Guild.

One of the better programs offered by an accredited university is at Bastyr University near Seattle.

Having a Ph.D. has little or nothing to do with it - there is a patchwork of state regulations that vary widely.

Good answer, apollog, you post something helpful once again!

Naturopaths seem to recommend herbs to use--they have their own credentialing programs.

Credential, as a diploma or certification, is probably not the same as a USA individual states' license to legally practice your craft.
Theoretically any licensing is done by a State Board, if the state recognizes the practice of your discipline.
My assumption is that this means a M.D & D.O. are only legal prescribers of any herb in the USA; with D.C. usually getting leeway to make recommendations.
(The old USA Homeopathy Medical Boards have been closed down by now, I bet.)

There appears to still be one in Arizona, and perhaps Nevada, according to my Google search under "Medical Boards of Homeopathy".

That search term also pulled up an organization that seems to virulently dislike homeopaths.

:o)

>> My assumption is that this means a M.D & D.O. are only legal prescribers of any herb in the USA;

No, 12 states have licensing for doctors of naturopathy, and most states have licensing for chiropractic doctors, acupuncturists (doctors of Traditional Chinese Medicine), and the licensing laws often allow for diagnosis of patients and prescription of herbs. Some states specifically allow licensed massage therapists to make use of herbs within their scope of practice.

• Can an herbalist practice medicine? Legally, in the United States, the practice of medicine is restricted to those professionals who have a license. Practice is generally defined as both diagnosis and prescription, with a focus on the treatment of disease (the laws vary from state to state). There are no restrictions, however, on teaching people how to take better care of themselves. Most herbalists define themselves as teachers, healers or counselors rather than as medical practitioners. (

source)