The Center for Disease Control (CDC) introduced guidelines for prescribing opioids in 2016. Since then, there has been a rush to implement, in some cases, even more restrictive legislation or healthcare policy than the original CDC recommendations.
Efforts are fueled by “opioid hysteria” sending federal oversight agencies, Medicare, Medicaid, states, third-party administrators and corporations into overdrive, rushing to implement additional restrictive guidelines, bordering on opioid prohibition, often with bias, and without sufficient research or evidence.
Policy makers are introducing and approving significantly more restrictive healthcare policy, federally and state by state, than what was originally suggested by the CDC as “guidance to primary physicians,” and those changes in policy are being rolled out at such a rapid fire pace, that it is difficult to track these changes, much less comprehend or respond.
Many of these changes will be rolled out in 2019, and we will track the impact to the pain community, including the acute community, who will be more readily impacted than in the past.
It will be a community effort to track and respond to these issues.
Pain Advocacy Coalition will attempt to bring transparency to changes in healthcare policy, and continue to advocate for individualized patient care, choice, privacy, access to medical care and consistency in treatment options.
Feel free to update us about the changes in your state or your healthcare plan.
Check out additional posts and announcements as these changes come to our attention!
Thanks for your support in bringing this information to the pain community and the public’s awareness!
#RiseUp