opioids
Five Consequential Issues for People with Pain in 2018
As 2018 comes to a close, I have reflected on legislation, polices, and a critical report that will likely continue to have an impact on the pain community in 2019. In no particular order, I have listed 5 issues that I feel were highly consequential for 2018. 1. CMS Decides to Impose Opioid Limits Beginning…
Read MoreAmerican Society of Anesthesiologists Oppose Oregon’s Opioid Prescribing Proposal
Oregon Chronic Pain Task Force’s Proposal I previously posted a letter written by Dr. Sean Mackey that discusses the problem with the Oregon Chronic Pain Task Force’s proposal that would leave many Medicaid patients without adequate pain therapy. The proposal would force providers to lower, or eliminate, the use of opioids despite the benefits patients…
Read MoreWhat Senator Ed Markey Doesn’t Understand
Senator Ed Markey of MA Opposed DSUVIA According to a recent USA Today article, Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts “urged the FDA not to approve Dsuvia last month, saying “an opioid that is a thousand times more powerful than morphine is a thousand times more likely to be abused, and a thousand times more likely to…
Read MoreJournalists Jacob Sullum and Pat Anson Report on Two Important Topics
Medicare Rule Will Create New Challenges for Chronic Pain Patients Jacob Sullum recently wrote an article, “Medicare Rule Will Create New Challenges for Chronic Pain Patients,” for Practical Pain Management about the ways in which the pending Medicare changes will adversely affect chronic pain patients. As he explains, the new Medicare rule is intended to…
Read MoreGet Out to Vote
Vote to Change Healthcare Policies Mid-term elections are approaching. If you have the ability to vote, then this is a chance to help determine the direction of our healthcare policies. There are many issues important to each of us. To people who follow my blog, the most important healthcare issues have to do with how…
Read MoreSUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act
SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act President Donald Trump signed the bi-partisan opioid legislation on October 24. According to Vox, the Substance Use Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act “is a big breakthrough that will boost access to addiction treatment and many other interventions to mitigate the…
Read MoreMy Testimony Before the ADCOM for AcelRex’s DSUVIA
On Friday, Oct. 12, 2018, AcelRex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. presented its case to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products Advisory Committee (ADCOM) to discuss the approval of the new drug application (NDA) 209128 for DSUVIA™. DSUVIA is a small sufentanil pill deposited below the tongue with an applicator. It is…
Read MoreHealth Professionals Call on the CDC to Address Misapplication of Its Guideline
Stefan G. Kertesz, MD Pens a Letter to the CDC Health Professionals Call on the CDC to Address Misapplication of Its Guideline on Opioids for Chronic Pain through Public Clarification and Impact Evaluation by Health Professionals for People in Pain is a letter that I recently had the privilege of signing. (Click here to see…
Read MoreDetecting the Liar
Discerning Lies Can Be Challenging According to Scientific American Mind, lying “is among the most sophisticated accomplishments of the human mind.” It requires cognitive skills that children are not born with and must acquire. Our ability to lie seems to improve until we reach young adulthood, and then it levels off. Once we reach about…
Read MoreWounded Healer
My Review of Drug Dealer MD: How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked and Why It’s So Hard to Stop, a Book by Anna Lembke, M.D. In Drug Dealer MD: How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked and Why It’s So Hard to Stop, Anna Lembke, M.D. offers her views on how a failed health care system created the…
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