FDA Offers Pharmacists Opioid Training

http://www.drugtopics.com/fda/fda-offers-pharmacists-opioid-training

Filed under: General Problems | 4 Comments »

DEA reschedules Epidiolex, marijuana-derived drug, paving the way for it to hit the market

Filed under: General Problems | 1 Comment »

Lauren Deluca, founding president of Chronic Illness Advocacy & Awareness Group (CIAAG), addressed the United Nations’ Commission on Narcotic Drugs today on the effects of the United States’ opioid crisis policies on chronic pain patients. CIAAG also proposed practical solutions to help monitor opioid use and ensure patients access to essential healthcare. Ms. Deluca warned, “Failure to protect patients’ rights to access essential medications and healthcare, will result in the loss of innocent lives through suicide, and inflate an already deadly issue into a human rights crisis.” Chronic Illness Advocacy & Awareness Group is working with Elected Officials and the patient community to help restore balance between protecting the public health from drug abuse and the safe, essential access to opioid analgesics for the chronically ill, older persons, and persons with disabilities. Learn more at CIAAG.net

Filed under: General Problems | 6 Comments »

Filed under: General Problems | 4 Comments »

Another example of a healthcare corporation taking away the professional discretion from their employed Pharmacists.  They use the “excuse”  of corresponding responsibility as justification for their actions.  Corresponding Responsibility is suppose to be a “two way street”… making sure that valid medications reach patients that need them and preventing the diversion of controlled substances.

Apparently some large corporations – like Walmart – that basically “dabble in providing healthcare”  have decided that they have the right to revoke the professional discretion of their employed Pharmacists and insert a corporate edict for them to follow.

Unfortunately, in this country we have a serious and growing Pharmacist surplus. Currently for ever TWO new pharmacists that we need, the pharmacy schools are graduating THREE. Some 5000 new pharmacists graduating every year looking for jobs that don’t exists. Pharmacists understand, don’t follow the corporate edict and you will be looking for a job.

Most/all boards of pharmacy have taken a similar stance..  their total focus seems to be on the prevention of diversion of controlled substances and those who have a valid medical necessity for controlled substance are just left to defend for themselves..

Since most of the 51 Boards of Pharmacy are “stacked” with non-practicing corporate Pharmacist and if you believe that these Pharmacists will stand up against the same corporations they work for…  you need a massive dose of REALITY.

The primary directive of the Boards of Pharmacy is to protect health/safety of the general public… and when individual pharmacists or healthcare corporations with pharmacies take the position that they are making a broad denial of care for certain pts… generally, the boards of pharmacy are as quiet as a “church mouse”

Generally speaking, independent pharmacies don’t “play games” with a pt’s necessary medications because you are dealing with the Pharmacist/owner and not a pharmacist that is being forced to walk in “lock-step” with their  corporate employers.

Here is a website that will help locate a independent pharmacy by zip code

http://www.ncpanet.org/home/find-your-local-pharmacy

Filed under: General Problems | 1 Comment »

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_Man_Standing_(U.S._TV_series)

Nearly 500,000 people signed a petition to get the ABC cancelled show LAST MAN STANDING brought back after it was cancelled.

FOX has picked up the show returning this fall season…

I find it interesting that when there is a petition for something being done AGAINST – and can harm – the chronic pain community… MAYBE a couple of thousand will sign it.

I guess that getting a TV show’s cancellation reversed is more important.. since that 500,000 signatures is about 8%-10% of the typical number of viewers that watch the show in its last year on ABC than the chronic pain community standing up for themselves.

I have had chronic painers state that they don’t want to put their pain management at risk by taking a stand…  here is a NEWS FLASH !! you can’t keep your head low enough to avoid being noticed as a chronic painer !

Filed under: General Problems | 8 Comments »

Boy Denied Life-Saving Treatment Because He Used Cannabis Oil To Treat Seizures

www.mommingschool.com/boy-denied-life-saving-treatment-because-he-used-cannabis-oil-to-treat-seizures/

Despite increasing evidence that CBD (cannabidiol), a nonpsychoactive cannabinoid, can help treat severe seizure disorders, a thirteen-year-old Virginia boy suffering from a rare disease has been denied treatment for his use of the plant.

Kaden Hartman suffers from Niemann-Pick disease, also dubbed “Child Alzheimer’s.” According to the National Niemann-Pick Foundation, it is a rare disorder that affects lysosomal storage and metabolism and can cause symptoms including progressive loss of early motor skills, slurred speech, seizures, and hypersensitivity to touch. Most children diagnosed with Niemann-Pick do not live past age 20.

Kaden’s mother, Kathy, contacted High Times magazine to tell his story after he was denied access to an experimental medication he has been taking for three years after the coordinating hospital found out he had also been taking CBD. He has been using the plant-based treatment since he first began experiencing symptoms.

She says Cyclodextrin, the experimental treatment, has been effective in treating his disorder. It was approved directly by the FDA. “When there’s nothing else out there to save his life, the FDA will approve an experimental medicine, and he’s been on it for almost three years,” Kathy told High Times.

She says it’s “definitely working.”

She also believes the CBD is helping reduce his seizures. He has been using it under the supervision of his primary neurologist and initially received a prescription for it from his pediatric neurologist, Dr. Ralph Northam, who is now the governor of Virginia (in Virginia, cannabis oil was approved to treat “intractable epilepsy in 2015, and lawmakers are currently crafting legislation to allow the use of non-psychoactive cannabis oils for a broader range of conditions). You can see this for the best marijuana products in town! This prescription has allowed him to access a more potent version of the drug. Kathy says she told Kaden’s primary neurologist that it “seems to be working great” and says CBD comes with far fewer side effects than traditional anti-seizure medications. You can also click here to go on Missouri Green Team, to get the right information about medical marijuana.

But when Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center contacted her to tell her Kaden would be taken off Cyclodextrin if he continued to take CBD, Kathy removed CBD from his regimen. “Off CBD, Kaden experiences many seizures. He has since fractured his skull, concussed himself, and developed two blood clots in his brain,” High Times summarized.

“Not only was this 13-year-old denied life-saving treatment because he used CBD oil, but CBD oil itself was a lifesaving treatment for seizures.”

Nevertheless, VCU Medical Center warned Kathy that she had to take her son off the medication. According to her, after they sent the warning letter, they called her, saying “Your son is on CBD oil. He is terminated from the clinical trial. Don’t bother ever showing up again,” she summarized.

She showed up to his next two appointments, anyway, concerned that if she didn’t, the FDA would terminate Kaden’s participation altogether. VCU terminated his spinal tap appointments, which were held every other Monday.

VCU eventually amended their previous statements, saying that “once they have approval from the FDA, the International Review Board (IRB), and the pharmaceutical company,” Kaden could go back on Cyclodextrin.

But, as High Times summarized, “Mrs. Hartman says that they don’t need any of these approvals due to the nature of Kaden’s treatment and that they shouldn’t be sharing information with the pharmaceutical company in the first place.”

She believes doing so could warrant a medical malpractice suit. Worse, getting the approval VCU is demanding could take months. “The FDA only meets once a month. The IRB only meets maybe quarterly or once a month,” Kathy said, worrying that because the company that manufactures the medication has already been bought out twice, Kaden may never be able to go back on it despite the fact that, according to Kathy, he doesn’t even need FDA approval.

“He’s not part of a formal clinical trial. He’s a single patient under the compassionate use law,” she said. Further, she says the trial never forbade CBD. Besides, as Dr. Rebecca Caffrey, a friend of the Hartman family pointed out, “[Kaden] has received many meds not on the protocol, like steroids for the swelling in his fractured skull and pain meds during his recovery from that injury.”

High Times notes that other patients participating in similar drug trials for Niemann-Picks have been able to take CBD with no trouble.

“All they have to do is write a two-paragraph letter to the FDA saying FYI we put him on this medicine,” Kathy says (however, cannabidiol does remain illegal at the federal level, and current compassionate use stipulations direct potential patients to a pharmaceutical version of cannabis). According to her, the doctor in the trial never attempted to do that.

According to 10-WAVY, a regional outlet, the hospital declined to comment on Kaden’s case despite having commented on him previously. The hospital spokesperson cited patient privacy.

In the meantime, Kathy worries that the suspension of Kaden’s trial treatment is endangering his life. She says her friend’s son, who also suffered from the disease, missed two doses of Cyclodextrin and ultimately died. Kaden has missed multiple doses already.

“First do no harm. By doing nothing, you’re creating harm,” as Kathy says she told Dr. Syndi Seinfeld of VCU, who is responsible for Kaden’s treatment.

Or, more bluntly, as she told VCU, “You take him off the study…you just killed my child.”

This article is full on contradictions…  first it is stated that he is part of a clinical trial and secondly he is being given the medications because of COMPASSIONATE USE LAW…

The hospital declined to comment on Kaden’s treatment after they had previously made comments.

If Kaden is part of a clinical trial, being on a medication that is unknown to those supervising the clinical trial could – at some later point in time – call to questions of the outcomes of the clinical trial.

If he is receiving this medication as part of a “compassionate law” and nothing to do with a clinical trial.. that is a whole another story.

I smell that some attorney has gotten involved in this issue..  because it is stated in the article that CBD oil is still consider an “illegal substance” by the DEA .. regardless of state’s law.

If this hospital – like most hospitals – get a large portion of their revenue from Medicare, Medicaid.. could there have been a “veiled threat” from someone in the Federal judicial system regarding the hospital being able to be able to continue to treat Medicare and Medicaid pts if they continue to allow one of their pediatric pts to receive/take what our federal judicial system considered a ILLEGAL PRODUCT.

Could this child’s quality of life – or life itself – have little meaning to those in our judicial system or whatever entity that has put the “fear of the feds” into the hospital’s administration and caused this reaction.  Much like the same reactions that has caused untold thousands of chronic pain pts into living in a torturous level of pain and some of them deciding that the only relief that they can get from their unrelenting pain is SUICIDE.

Filed under: General Problems | Leave a Comment »

Medical Treatment Denial and Malpractice Lawsuits

https://www.injuryclaimcoach.com/treatment-denial.html

Can you sue a doctor or hospital for refusing treatment? The answer is…it depends. State and federal laws vary widely on the issues of medical treatment denial. If you’re considering legal action against a doctor or hospital for refusing to treat, you should consult with an experienced attorney. These cases are complex.

Refusal of medical treatment usually occurs in emergency rooms and urgent care clinics. A trained medical technician’s or nurse’s assessment of a medical condition, known as triage, determines the priority of an injured person’s medical need. People with life threatening injuries may be seen immediately, while those with lesser injuries may have to wait.

For example, a patient with chest pains, which may indicate the onset of a heart attack, will receive immediate medical care. Those with head trauma, serious burns, or other life threatening injuries will also be high on the list. Someone with a sprained ankle, however, may have to wait for several hours before being seen.

There are times when a patient may be rightfully denied emergency medical care. Some of the most common reasons include:

• The patient exhibits “drug seeking behavior.” Most emergency room doctors and nurses are trained to identify those who likely have a drug problem.
• The patient is deluded, believing she is seriously ill when there is no real illness.
• The patient displays destructive or dangerous behavior while waiting to be seen.

If you don’t fall under one of the above categories, you will still be able to see the emergency room doctor, even if you don’t have a medical emergency (due to liability reasons). You may have to wait until every patient with a more serious condition is seen, even if they arrived at the E.R. hours after you did, which is a legitimate exercise of emergency care triage.

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act

The Federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), is part of the Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation Act (COBRA). EMTALA.com offers a summary of its provisions. The Act applies to all hospitals in the United States and its territories. It sets out the laws governing facilities that provide emergency medical care.

The EMTALA requires hospital E.R. staff to provide medical treatment to all people with real emergency medical conditions, regardless of the person’s ability to pay (or provide medical insurance). Illegal denial of treatment may subject the medical provider to disciplinary action.

Under EMTALA, an emergency medical condition is defined as:

…one that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe pain, psychiatric disturbance, and/or symptoms of substance abuse) such that the absence of immediate medical attention could reasonably be expected to result in the following:

• placing the health of the individual (or unborn child) in serious jeopardy
• the serious impairment of a bodily function
• the serious dysfunction of any bodily function or part
• the inadequate time to effect a safe transfer of a pregnant woman to another hospital before delivery, or, that the transfer may pose a threat to the health or safety of the woman or unborn child.”

Under EMTALA, people with medical emergencies must be treated to the extent their condition is stabilized. Stabilized means the patient is placed in a position so that discharge from emergency care will not adversely affect or otherwise cause a “material deterioration” of the patient’s condition.

This includes the time that passes during the patient’s return home, or to another medical facility. For women, this includes waiting until a baby is delivered.

Under the Federal Civil Rights Act of 1964, and subsequent federal laws, hospital emergency rooms and registered clinics can’t deny treatment to patients based on race, color, creed, age, or sexual preference, presuming the patient has a true medical emergency.

Once stabilized, the EMTALA permits the medical facility to legitimately deny the patient medical care. Denial of care can be based on a number of legitimate reasons (barring descrimination), including inability to pay for services, lack of insurance, type of illness, and other practical reasons.

What to do if you were denied emergency medical treatment:

If you were denied treatment for legitimate reasons at an emergency room or urgent care center, you may have no legal recourse. If, however, you learn from a credible medical provider your condition did require emergency care, and you were turned away from an E.R., you may have the basis of a medical malpractice claim.

Additionally, you may report the emergency provider’s action to Medicare. They will investigate your claim, and if they find you were denied emergency medical care in violation of EMTALA, the facility may be subject to:

• Termination of their lucrative Medicare provider agreement
• Fines up to $50,000 per violation ($25,000 for a hospital with fewer than 100 beds)
• Physician fines of $50,000 per violation, including on-call physicians

If you are wrongly denied treatment in an emergency room setting, ask to see the person responsible for operations. State that you are familiar with EMTALA regulations and you’re sure refusing to treat you is a violation. Cite the reasons you were wrongfully denied treatment, such as not having insurance, or being unable to pay the costs of treatment.

You have no rights to any fines levied against the hospital for violation of EMTALA. However, if you can prove their treatment denial resulted in an unnecessary aggravation of a pre-existing condition, or was responsible for unnecessary physical pain and suffering, you may have the basis of a medical malpractice case.

If the hospital was fined or censured by the government for violating EMTALA, those violations will go a long way towards supporting a malpractice claim.

If you were refused medical treatment based on discrimination, as set out under the Federal Civil Rights Act, the violation can be reported to your state attorney general’s office, or the local office of the United States Attorney.

Can private doctors refuse to treat patients?

The short answer is, yes. A private doctor isn’t subject to the provisions of EMTALA, and can dismiss you as a patient at any time (barring discrimination), for just about any reason, without fear of credible legal reprisals. Doctors in private practice are basically small business owners. In a sense, a sign stating “No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service” can be applied to doctors, as well as to your local restaurateur.

A doctor can refuse to treat a patient because:

• The doctor’s practice is so busy she is unable to accept new patients.
• The doctor doesn’t have a working relationship with your health insurance company.
• The doctor chooses not to treat patients with the illness or injury you suffer from.
• You can’t pay for the costs of treatment.
• You or your spouse is a medical malpractice attorney.

Your doctor can refuse to continue treating you because:

• You haven’t paid your bill.
• The doctor has stopped doing business with your health insurance provider.
• You continue to exhibit drug seeking behavior.
• You are a disruptive patient.
• For reasons of conscience (including religious, contraceptive, or palliative care beliefs, or deciding not to prescribe narcotics for pain management).
• The doctor learns you or your spouse is a medical malpractice attorney.

There is an exception:

You can’t be discharged if it will result in your medical condition worsening before you find another doctor, or will result in another medical condition.

If your doctor says she has to stop treating you, you must try to find another doctor as soon as reasonably possible. Whether or not your doctor can discharge you as a patient after giving you adequate time to find another doctor, and you refused to do so, is a question for the courts.

If your doctor refuses to continue to provide treatment, and as a direct result your condition worsens, you may have the basis of a medical malpractice claim.

Get an Attorney

If you believe you were wrongfully denied medical treatment by a doctor or emergency care facility, and that denial caused you further injury, you must seek the advice and counsel of an experienced medical malpractice attorney.

Malpractice cases are complex, and can sometimes take years to resolve. Hospitals and doctors pay millions of dollars in malpractice insurance premiums. Any malpractice claim will be defended aggressively by “take no prisoners” attorneys working for the insurance company. Only an experienced attorney can handle a case like this and properly represent your interests.

If the treatment denial occurred in an emergency room setting, you should retain an attorney with experience in EMTALA violations. Most malpractice attorneys don’t charge for an initial consultation. In almost all cases, you won’t have to pay any legal fees or other costs until, and unless your attorney wins your case.

Filed under: General Problems | 2 Comments »

WE THE PEOPLE

Filed under: General Problems | 4 Comments »

Drug Overdose Epidemic Has Been Growing Exponentially For Decades

https://www.news-line.com/PH_news27263_enews

Death rates from drug overdoses in the U.S. have been on an exponential growth curve that began at least 15 years before the mid-1990s surge in opioid prescribing

suggesting that overdose death rates may continue along this same historical growth trajectory for years to come, according to a University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health analysis published today in Science.

This research was supported in part by CDC grant IPA1605230, National Institutes of Health grant 1KL2TR0001856 and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant 72858.

Filed under: General Problems | 4 Comments »