DEA INFLICTS HARM ON CHRONIC PAIN PATIENTS
http://canceravoidmid.com/dea-inflicts-harm-on-chronic-pain-patients/
In an effort to curb opioid drug abuse and addiction, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has issued new rules that limit the accessibility of hydrocodone, putting chronic pain sufferers who rely on the drug in an impossible situation.
The DEA’s new restrictions come after the decision to relabel hydrocodone as a Schedule II drug, making it difficult for users with chronic pain to receive the medicine they need. The recent changes include the elimination of phone-in refills and a mandatory check-in with a doctor every 90 days for a refill.
Hydrocodone is one of the most widely used drugs to fight chronic pain in the United States, serving a consumer base of about 100 million people. Many who rely on hydrocodone suffer from debilitating chronic pain, which greatly disrupts and decreases their quality of life.
Pain advocates across the country were vocal when the DEA announced these changes: they would have unintended consequences that would hurt, rather than help, legitimate pain patients in need. I spoke with a former patient of mine to find out how she was affected by the up-schedule of hydrocodone. She lives two hours away from the doctor who currently helps manage her pain. For her, it’s a 4 hour round trip every 90-days to access the medication that has helped revive a semblance normalcy since her pain first surfaced when she was just 20 years old. What’s worse, she told me that now, more than ever, she has been made to feel like a criminal for seeking access to medicine that has been rightfully prescribed to her by her own doctor.
In attempting to decode how other patients have been affected by the DEA rule change, the National Fibromyalgia and Chronic Pain Association (NFMCPA) released a survey of assessing the first 100 days after the regulatory change. The results are scary:
· 88 percent of patients felt that the changes denied their rights to access pain medication
· 71 percent report being switched to less effective medications by their doctors, who are fearful of legal issues
· 52 percent felt an increase sense of stigma as a patient receiving hydrocodone
· 27 percent of patients even reported suicidal thoughts when unable to access their prescription.
Controlling the abuse and overuse of pain killing drugs is necessary to keep patients safe, but the importance of decreasing drug abuse does not outweigh the needs of millions of people who suffer from chronic and depleting pain. When patients who suffer from these excruciating conditions are denied access to medication, they often turn to alternative forms of relief such as black market drugs, creating a larger issue of abuse.
Solving the problem begins with communication among the medical community, to ensure patients have access to their necessary medicine and the ability to live the life they deserve.
The medical system’s purpose is to treat and work for the betterment of patients. When we work against the people we are set up to serve, we are doing a great disservice to our cause and the people who rely on us most.
Filed under: General Problems
Why doesn’t someone publish a comparison between the United States and other countries who have decriminalized drug use when it comes to addiction and overdoses?
Again, my point is and always will be that our governments law enforcement agencies are blaming legal prescription drug use for their own short comings by not stopping the huge inflow of heroin, meth and a shopping list of many other illegal drugs over our boarders. Using this propaganda vomit that’s being spude daily, along with the unproven and most likely fictional numbers about overdoses and addiction caused by doctors prescribing opiates to actual pain patients are the major weapons in their arsenal. Don’t you think that it’s time for the truth to be told?
There is a 100 million chronic pain sufferers in the United States, and out of these people there has to be at least 1 person in each family who is effected by these ailments, either emotionally or financially. That equals 200 million or more who are or will eventually be effected by this governmental campaign against the medical profession actually helping suffering citizens. I believe that 200 million people just might be enough to make a difference.
There are a lot of us who are members or followers of the Fight For Florida Pain Care Action Network that live in states other than Florida. I agree that the patients in Florida have been hit the hardest and suffered the most, but the aftershocks are starting to reach the rest of the country very quickly. It’s become our obligation to join in, we need to make this a nation wide action before it’s too late. We can continue to voice our options here hoping they make some sort of connection, or we can step up and help Steve and the other terrific and deserving people from Florida get this job done. Just imagine a “Fight For National Pain Care Action Network”. In the 1960’s less than 16% of our nation stood up for Civil Rights, can you imagine what 50% of our country could do for our cause?
DM, I agree with everything you say. Ive ben saying it for a long time now, that the chronic intractable pain community come together as one and protest, we need to get our voices heard loud. It’s going to get worse and I fear of what’s to come for myself, my brother and the millions of legitimate chronic pain sufferers. I am going on ten years, after two failed spina fusions that left me with severe nerve damage down my legs into my feet. I also have three herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, spinal stenosis, fibromyalgia, sciatica, arthritis in hips and spine, pancreatitis, migraines, anxiety and depression. My youngest brother to is a chronic intractable pain sufferer who has plates, rods, screws from neck to tailbone from a MVA where the driver of the car that hit him, left him to die on the side of the NJturnpike. This past year he has been jerked around by the pain dr he sees, he has been degraded, neglected, mistreated, and denied the correct dose of pain medication. This pain dr told my brother once he got mri done and could see resultsthen he woukd up the dose of pain medication, I guess he had to see if my brother was lying, disgraceful, This pain dr sat on his as in getting the mri approved thru insurance. He intentionally delayed the test for nearly eight months, all the while my brother did not have his pain managed. His pain went untreated and under medicated. By the time the mri was done, the pain dr had started talking surgery to my brother, referred him to some surgeon, Dr. Opprnheimer, This surgeon sold my brother this surgery in a neat little package, told him it would be a one one inch incision, told him by day three he should have minimal pain. Made it sound soo great.. It turned out to be a six hour surgery, there are two incisions on each side of spine about two inches long and another incision above those two, about inch and half long. The one incision has been leaking fluid and blood for over two weeks. Theres a hole where the incision is. I saw my brother today and its now leaking a milky type substance. He has yet to be given something for pain. Surgeon has not caled once, Ive beendealing with some PA guy, Im outraged over the neglect this surgeon is showing my brother.
im sure his assistant has been in touch with him. and the surgeon has not picked up the phone to check on his patient. My brother went to the hosp two days ago, hes in agony, they would not touch him until the surgeon called, Nine hours my brother sat there in excruciating pain, fluid and blood coming out, they gave him a very low dose shot for pain that did nothing, had to wait on surgeon. My brother had enough and we left. So now I sit here worried sick that theres a very good chance theres an infection. My brother has had it with the degrading and being treated like an addict, Hes a human being in severe pain. Had he been given the correct dose of pain meds from the beginning, he would have gotten relief and had a QUALITY OF LIFE . The surgeon never communicated with pain dr about prior meds either. He went and gave my brother the lowest dose of percocet with tylnol, something much less then what e was on prior. He also tried to give him two other meds that my brother had bad reactions too. NO COMMUNICATION WHAT SO EVER!! Sorry for the long rant. I know there are many more out their like myself and my brother being FORCED BY THE DEA, CDC, AND THE GOVERNMENT TO ENDURE SEVERE PAIN! THIS IS BARBARIC, THIS IS CRUEL, THIS IS UNETHICAL, THIS IS INHUMANE. AND A VIOLATION OF OUR RIGHTS!!
I’m truly sorry to hear about the pain and stress that your brother has had to endure. I just started bombarding 60 minutes with comments on their viewer comment page recently. I would suggest that all of us do the same. Tell your story and continue to tell it every chance you get. Sooner or later it’s going to get someone’s attention. We all know that our governments representatives aren’t helping us but the thing that they hate the most is negative press. Until our stories and needs are reported on a national level, the only thing that we’re going to accomplish is a lot of complaining back and forth between ourselves. It’s a good thing to communicate with our peers because talk with people who understand is therapeutic. But sending our message to the masses will get results.
Before this, it was already so inhumanely possible for my wife to be an addict as her refills skip 3-5 weeks between, due to pharmacies. Aside the fact she never drinks and has Dr and er labs proving never drug use. You cannot make an addict or criminal out of bones who just are not that. Meanwhile, real addicts are on hard drugs, street, designer, and psychotropics and alcohol.
This is so true and on many different levels…..lets face the facts chronic pain patients do not abuse medication…the only abuse if u want to call it that is on breakthrough times when u have been on something for a while and it doesn’t work as well as in the beginning and u might take an extra one b with in time….as everyone is different……..but u have in no way abused your meds….just your tolerance level has increased……and i would say that this has happened to 99%of chronic pain patients….and everyone kn ows it……..abuse is people who are trying to get a buzz….an extra pill here or there is not abuse…..it is maintaining a quality of life…..please get it right….and qiut blaming us for you to keep your jobs.. just my and many other 2 cents worth. …thankyou…..
I agree with all you said. We are NOT addicts, DO NOT CRAVE A PILL, DO NOT GET HIGH AT ALL. And yes there have been plenty times ive had to take e tra to get relief, no thanks to my dr who reduced my meds to ineffective doses