A ever increasing number of prescribers are becoming EMPLOYEES of large corporations… mostly hospitals. The reason that many prescriber are becoming employees of these hospitals is because the cost of the “back office” .. where all the billing and other administrative functions are done… is getting more and more costly to keep the hardware and software “current”.
In giving up their private practice, they are subjecting themselves to the whims of the bureaucrats in trying to increase the productivity – and profits – out of the fewest employees. These prescriber/employees can often be given the choice of following the policies & procedures (P&P) regarding how/when pts are treated.. or they can find themselves becoming unemployed if they don’t follow those P&P’s.
It doesn’t seem to matter that these corporations are attempting to over-write or supersede the state’s medical practice act, which is the basis that gives prescribers their authority to practice medicine. The medical licensing boards seem to have turned a “blind eye” or “deft ear” to what is going on.
Pharmacists are going thru similar troubles… and both of these boards have professionals sitting on them… most are political appointments… payback for large contributions to election campaigns ? and are employees of the these same corporations, and many wonder why the boards will not call these large corporation “on the carpet” for dictating how these professional practice their respective professions.
So if complaining to a healthcare licensing board and nothing happens… what is a pt to do… Technically, the state’s attorney general is the enforcer of the state’s laws.. and suppose to oversee the various boards to make sure that they do their job.
However, the vast majority of AG’s are suing various entities within legal pharmaceutical medication distribution system over the theoretical opiate crisis… so who believes the various AG’s are concerned about pts that have a valid medical necessity for taking controlled substances ?
The next step on the ladder to get someone to listen to pts being denied care or only receiving “token doses” of their necessary medications… that would be the state legislators… these are the people who passed the laws that are being ignored and not followed.
BUT… these same legislatures are passing laws,rules, regulations that are restricting how many days and how many mgs/day chronic pain pts can be legally prescribed. So will they care, if chronic pain pts are not getting their necessary medication(s) ?
SO, it would seem that every part of the legislator, executive and judicial branches of our government… are collectively turning a blind eye or deft ear to what is going on.. Really doesn’t make much difference if you are looking at the state or federal level bureaucracies.
IF any of you have noticed, various cities, counties, states are SUING various parts of the pharmaceutical drugs distribution system ( Pharmas, wholesalers, pharmacies) because they are selling a legal product is perceived as the underlying cause of the opiate crisis. The fact that the drug cartels are generating 100 BILLION/yr in revenue selling ILLEGAL OPIATES/SUBSTANCES… seems to have escaped their notice or they don’t consider them as contributing anything to the opiate crisis.
Has anyone noticed how many hundreds or thousands of petitions have been put up on the web ? AND, how many has produced at least some attention from a bureaucrat/politician that even wants to ask questions to try and find out some of the truth about the opiate crisis that seems to be left out of the majority of the conversation(s) ?
Should the chronic pain community pay attention to what others are doing to interfere/slow down/ stop the opiate crisis ? Hire law firms to sue these corporations for attempting to practice medicine without a license.
Challenge the constitutionality of many laws that our judicial system is using to “fight” the war on drugs
The vast majority of politicians (abt 98%) will get reelected … doesn’t matter what they did do or didn’t do… How many have sent letters to your elected politician and got a response back that may have – or not have – anything in it that begins to approach the concerns in the pt’s original letter.. Typically, the person gets back a form letter, that may have a few “catch words” that appear in the original letter.
Filed under: General Problems
We need to flood Chris Christies office with a million emails and phone calls. Then maybe we will get their attention.
All they have done is open a market for illegal drug trade for iPods. People cannot remain in pain and it is strictly prohibited by the hypocratic oath that physicians take when becoming a doctor.
Mississippi is the only state that the dea has gotta go thru them 1st to arrest a doctor,,,I like that,,,However I have spoken to my senatores,,and they just refuse to acknowledge us CPP’S here in Wisconsin,,so far,,,I have wriiten other agencys,,,and they lack the legal power to stop this tortureous genocide,,,Soo,,,if 1 state is getting recognized,,,mississippi,,,excellent,,,,but we have been tryen very hard to stop this corrupt genocide on the medically ill,,,maryw
I wholeheartedly disagree with pharmacist brother Steve in his post about why complaints and petitions are not getting the chronic pain community anywhere.
The problem is “INEFFECTIVE ADVOCACY” by the chronic pain advocacy community.
For example, if you have a petition concerning a chronic pain trestment issue, how do you know your petition is getting to your members of congress?
You need to print up your petition with the list of signatures and deliver it in person to your member of congress or the health issues staff representative. Tell them you are a member and/or supporter of the National Pain Patients Coalition (NPPC), along with the chronic pain advocacy group you are affiliated with, and plan to participate in PAIN PATIENTS ADVOCACY WEEK, April 23-30, 2018.
The members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) have been very responsive to the sickle cell anemia chronic pain patient community.
They are working to make sure that our Congressional Briefing on Chronic Pain, April 2018, 12:00noon to 2:00pm, at the U.S. Capitol, is very impactful.
My congressman from the 2nd Congressional District of Mississippi, Bennie Thompson, Ranking Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, is making sure we receive a permit for our WHITE COAT PROTEST RALLY AGAINST THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, on Tuesday, April 24, 2018, during PAIN PATIENTS ADVOCACY WEEK.
Anyone wanting assistance on being effective chronic pain patient advocates, please contact me at 662-392-2016.
Sorry Steve, I can’t agree with you on this one.
JMO,,it is exactly like what happen’d when the ,”colonist,” would write a letter to England,,,too much in taxes,,,,,,England would up the taxes more..But they,colonist] wrote letters to ,”reason,” w/King George,,but since everyone in England saw the founding fathers as nothing more then ,”colonist,” and not true Britain’s,,,,every petition,,every letter became of no consequences. Same w/our medicine,,,soo far,.,,they have been petition/letters falling on corrupt sob’s,,,thus have been letter/petition of no consequence,,,,But for me,,,I will continue to resist,,,because I truly feel,,no-one has the right force physical pain onto any living entity,,,EVERY!!,,,ALLL WARS ARE WON IN THE HEARTS,,, we have to convince the public by showing them what our medicines did for us,,and the suffering we are in when we don’t have MEDICINES,,,,for me,,if anyone took the time to read thee Declaration of Independence,,,,there are many lines in it,,that apply directly to what is happening to us,,,,,thus I use it and the bible as my guide,,For the same,,many lines in the bible state exactly what has been done to us,,,Both documents for me represent thee proper moral/ethical treatment of mankind or any living entity,,,For what is moral and ethical about FORCING humanbeings to endure physical pain from medical conditions,,,NOTHING,!!!,, and that is what we need to show the public,,jmo,,,maryw
If limitation to access of viable medical options for Medical marijuana is infringement of liberty and security of person then I would think that the same would apply to limitation on access to opioids, but that’s just me and I am not a lawyer
An excerpt from article below
“Furthermore, the limitation of viable medical options that patients could access without risking imprisonment was deemed an infringement of liberty by the Court. The restriction also violated the right to security, the Court held, by creating the choice between legal and ineffective treatment and illegal and more effective treatment. “(R. v. Smith, supra, ¶ 17-18) http://www.loc.gov/law/foreign-news/article/canada-supreme-court-rules-that-all-forms-of-medical-marijuana-are-permissible/
I sought resolution to Sam’s Club / Walmart implemented mandate of January 2106. To date no State or Federally regulatory agency has taken any action against the Corporation and the unlawfulness and violations of patients’ rights continue with impunity. I was eventually terminated for whistle blowing.
Failing all personal attempts to gain traction I wrote Senator Marco Rubio. He assisted in an inquiry but nothing came to fruition.
The Rubio letter 05.2017:
Dear Senator Rubio,
Thank you so very much for giving attention to my complaint of Walmart’s wrongdoing and unlawfulness as it pertains to our Florida Medicare,Medicaid, and Disabled Patients. I now ask that you also inquire of the Florida State regulatory agencies why no action was taken to stop and correct the unlawful activity of the corporation.
The impetus of my complaint to CMS was the implementation by Walmart / Sam’s Club of an unlawful mandate in January 2016 that usurps the Professional Judgment of the employed Pharmacists. The interference with a Pharmacist’s professional judgment by ANY entity is an act prohibited by several Florida Laws and Administrative Rules and is subject to disciplinary action ( see laws below) Interference with the Professional Judgment of a Pharmacist can result in endangerment of public safety and well-being. Created, the corporation’s unlawful mandate, implemented with fear of retribution, does just this.
In January 2016, the unlawful mandate, created on site, was applied only to my singular location and not company wide. The reason for its creation was/is to address the dispensing of certain controlled substance prescriptions which then denies access of the medications to legitimate patients with valid prescriptions pursuant to valid doctor/patient relationships. These medications are beneficial to many chronic pain patients and must remain accessible; unfortunately, the pendulum of the opioid epidemic battle has swung to far creating a situation where legitimate patients are being denied care that results in their suffering needlessly in many ways.
Once implemented, I immediately notified the corporate officers of its unlawfulness. Despite their awareness for the violations of law, they knowing and willfully maintained the application of the mandate. The mandate usurps professional judgment and coerces a Pharmacist to refuse validated prescriptions. Subsequent to the coerced refusals, the Patients’ Rights to “Free Choice” of their healthcare providers are then violated.
Obligated by Pharmacy laws, I as a Florida Pharmacist, was / am, required to report any wrongdoing to the appropriate regulatory agencies. I reported Walmart’s unlawful activity to the Florida Board of Pharmacy, the Board of Medicine, the Florida Department of Health Division for Medical Quality Assurance, and the State Attorney Generals offices. Attending a joint meeting of the Boards of pharmacy and medicine, I spoke personally to the Board of Pharmacy Executive Director Allison Dudley about my concerns and hand delivered to her and others a letter addressing the unlawful activity. On the federal level, I filed complaints with HHS and the OIG.
To Date, no action by any of the above agencies to address and stop the Corporation’s violations of Florida State and Federal Laws has occurred. It was only CMS and Florida AHCA that garnered attention in relation to Patients’ Rights violations.
The Florida MQA responded that they could take no action as they determined the matter to be an employer/employee issue only which it Clearly is not. The corporate activity is a direct violation of Florida Law and must be addressed.
I now ask that you and your staff inquire of these Florida regulatory agencies why they have failed in addressing this issue. They have continued to allow the corporation to act with impunity. The corporate activity undermines the integrity of the Profession of Pharmacy and the Pharmacist’s primary role as a protector of Patients’ safety and well-being. Endangerment of Public Safety by the corporation must cease. In the implementation of the unlawful mandate the corporation has essentially taken on the role of practicing medicine without a license. I seek you assistance in remedying this situation to protect the residents of the Florida from overzealous corporate decision making that endangers their safety.
I would be happy to meet and or discuss with you personally the intricacies of this unlawful activity in order you have a full and clear understanding of its impact on the delivery of good patient care. Please contact me with any questions or to arrange a meeting. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely yours,
Karl D. – B. Sc. Pharmacy
On May 12, 2017, at 11:19 AM, Senator Marco Rubio (imailagent) wrote:
Dear Mr. D.,
I regret to learn of the problem you are experiencing with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It is disappointing that your concerns have not received the appropriate attention. Gina on my staff has thoroughly reviewed your correspondence and contacted the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to inquire about this matter. My office will contact you when we receive additional information regarding your case.
Please bear in mind that some federal agencies require four to six weeks to properly investigate a congressional inquiry. Although I cannot guarantee a particular outcome, I will do my best to ensure you receive a fair and timely response. In the interim, should you have any questions, feel free to call my office at (305) 418-8553 or send an email to casework@rubio.senate.gov.
Thank you for the opportunity to serve you. I am humbled by my responsibilities in the United States Senate, and I will continue to work on behalf of our state of Florida.
Sincerely,
Marco Rubio
United States Senator
Each week I provide a weekly update on issues in Washington and ways in which my office can assist the people of Florida
NOTHING to stop overzealous corporate policy making, tantamount to practicing medicine, has been done. State and Federal bureaucrats turn a blind eye. It is not politically correct to advocate for responsible and legitimate pain management these days…
My email if anyone wants details: flrph@0utlook.
Karl, while I am furious that you lost your job for doing the right thing, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for standing up for your chronic pain patients who take prescription opioids. I appreciate you recognizing that prescription opioids are much-needed medications for those in physical pain, especially pain which is unrelenting and never stops. You are the perfect example of what pharmacists should strive to be – compassionate and standing up for what’s right (and politically incorrect). Thank you so much!!!