Oklahoma opioid law limits doctor prescription
https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/oklahoma-opioid-law-limits-doctor-prescription
TULSA – Hoping to curb the opioid epidemic impacting Oklahoma, a new law goes into effect Friday which limits the amount of opioids a doctor can prescribe.
The main focus of the Senate Bill 1446 is to try and find alternative solutions instead of prescribing opioids and to look at old treatment plans of people who suffer from chronic pain to make sure they’re not experiencing dependence problems.
With this new law, doctors are now only allowed to initially prescribe a weeks worth of opioid drugs at the lowest dose.
Before they prescribe another seven days, they have to meet with their patient to make sure they’re not at risk for abuse or addiction.
If more is needed, further pain management options need to be discussed.
“The initial legislation was designed to try to avoid that initial huge exposure to the opioids so that legislation was designed to put a, a very expected evolution of how much you could give somebody on an initial prescription and within the first 30-days ultimately,” Dr. Kevin Taubman, Past President of the Oklahoma State Medical Association, said.
Additionally, more safeguards are in place for patients who suffer from chronic pain like Tommy Stergas.
They now have to enter into a pain management agreement with their doctor to explain the risks of opioids.
Doctors can review the treatment plan at a minimum of every three months.
Stergas has rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia and began suffering from chronic pain at the age of 2.
He said he could not endure the pain and still work without taking opioids.
He believes these new laws are keeping people like him from getting the help they need.
“By keepin’ the patients that need the medications from getting treated, they’re committing suicide because they can’t stand the pain or have no quality of life,” said Stergas.
There are exemptions from the bill.
It includes patients who are receiving active treatment of cancer, in hospice, receiving palliative care, or residents in a long-term care facility.
The law also mandates that doctors receive an extra hour of continuing education in pain management or in opioid abuse and addiction before renewing their license.
Filed under: General Problems
Where do these idiots come from. Chronic Pain Patients have been
taking these medications for decades with no problems. But suddenly
all of us are addicted. I think they all want their five minutes of fame and their opinions heard because nobody pays any attention to them.
We are dependent, you moron, on our medication because it dulls our
pain just enough for us to lead somewhat normal lives. Are heart patients, diabetics, stroke patients, cancer patients all addicts? They
take monthly that they are dependent on.
I hope to God that someone will get through to you before you are
responsible for the deaths of even more Chronic Pain Patients.
Government must get out and stay out of medicine. Period!
Doctors, stand up and speak your mind about this lunacy! You’ve got big organizations and money to back you. The Hippocratic oath you took behooves you. Folks in pain need you.
Why has this BS been going on since 2016 (when the quacked CDC Guidelines came out) despite ILLEGAL DRUG overdoses continuing to climb? Oh, I know…because it’s NOT prescription opioids at the crux of our OD deaths. It’s ILLEGAL DRUGS (mainly), opioids included, plus our countries need to self-medicate with substances, including alcohol, benzos, amphetamines, etc., d/t adverse childhood and other negative/tragic experiences ppl endure during their lives and poor mental health care. TREAT THE PAIN for what it IS; separately or together. Treat the MENTAL HEALTH CONDITION for what it is (pain & mental health issues DO NOT always go hand in hand, but there are exceptions, as with anything—some ppl actually have both). Additionally, untreated, unrelenting pain can create mental health problems; depression, anxiety, isolation—even suicide, dare I say!
Our world would be a much healthier, happier place if ppl w/mental health conditions were not stigmatized and treated in a timely manner and if ppl w/pain were not treated as idiots or second class citizens. Everyone needs help one way or another, sometimes!!
Get with the program, everyone. Get government out of medicine. Doctors, stand up for what’s right per your Hippocratic Oath.