Oregon Opioid Forced Taper Debate Continues
http://nationalpainreport.com/oregon-opioid-forced-taper-debate-continues-8836964.html
Oregon’s Health Evidence Review Commission’s (HERC) Value based benefits Subcommittee heard testimony from national pain leaders, Oregon physicians and nurses and pain patients during a day long meeting on Thursday.
At issue is the controversial proposal that HERC is considering to force taper Oregon Medicaid patients off opioids in one year. While they are essentially guidelines, HERC calls them a prioritized list policy – HERC dictating how doctors care and prescribe for their medicaid patients, essentially.
The proposal raised the ire of pain patient advocates and medical professionals across the country. HERC’s Chronic Pain Task Force, which developed the guideline, has been asked to meet again on September 20th and consider the testimony heard this week.
Oregon physician Dr. Ginevra Liptan, who opened the nation’s first practice devoted to fibromyalgia was among those who testified—tearfully–against the guideline. Dr. Liptan has had fibromyalgia since she was in medical school at Tufts.
Also testifying against the guideline was Bob Twillman, Ph.D., is the Executive Director for the Academy of Integrative Pain Management. In that capacity, Dr. Twillman is responsible for overseeing federal and state pain policy developments and advocating for those supporting an integrative approach to managing pain.
In addition, two nurses from Oregon, Carolyn Concia and Karen Yeargin added their perspective that the forced taper guideline as constructed would hurt chronic pain patients–many of whom depend on opioid medication in their battle against pain.
Oregon’s chronic pain community showed at the meeting in Wilsonville to let the HERC members know that they believe these guidelines will hurt chronic pain patients. The “protestors” were outside the meeting site early Thursday morning, only to find out the HERC members went in the back door.
Two woman who led the protest, who do not wish to have their names publicized because of fear of recrimination against them and their doctors, labeled the day a “great success”.
They also warned–“the battle continues”.
Filed under: General Problems
I have watched as fibro myalgia has caused my wife to go from literal champion body builder to almost inactive period. I watched the onset of the first recognizable symptom to years later diagnosis. She is even more miserable because their is no very….effective therapy inclusive of oral medication that helps much with the pain and discomfort of it. Since early 2017 with the CDC “guideline” opiate medication distribution she has steadily regressed into a very much more inactive person as the doctor visits increase for her as the physicians try to decide why another negative health issue has arisen. I think I know why. Treat the symptoms if not able to stop them with the best therapy we have which is inclusive of opiate therapy in a monitored setting. Benefits outweigh negative aspects for long periods of tome. I hate watching her get older before her time.
Hayden; I’m sorry for you and for your wife. Compassion has completely left the building. I recently had a doctor tell me that there is no justification for having to put up with any pain on top of ‘all the terrible side effect’ of the pain medication that’s kept me relatively functional for years. “All the terrible side effects” are…constipation. I take magnesium, which fixes the “terrible side effect.” The pain medication doeson’t completely remove the pain, but certainly relieves it…and pain patients are constantly being harangued about “accepting” the pain, jumped on for any hint that we think pain medication will take it away completely. Yet we’re also supposed to accept that if the medication DOESN’T take it away completely, we shouldn’t bother taking it at all, even if there are no bad side effects. Why isn’t reduced pain with treatment better than vastly increased pain without treatment??
Benefits should outweigh negative aspects, especially when the benefits far outweigh any negative aspects, and when good options don’t really exist –just the best available, even if they’re not great.
I was at the August meeting, plan to go to the September one (I should be about recovered by then). I hope we’ll remember to picket all entrances of the building…I didn’t get the feeling that they really listened to us when we spoke, no matter what they claimed. But we gotta try, right?
Oregon –the state that wants you to die with dignity but live in Hell.