Survey Finds CDC Opioid Guidelines Harming Patients
March 15, 2017

By Pat Anson, Editor

The CDC’s opioid prescribing guidelines have harmed chronic pain patients, reduced access to pain care, and failed to reduce drug abuse and overdoses, according to a large new survey of patients, doctors and healthcare providers. The survey also found signs of a dramatic shift away from opioid prescribing over the past year.

Today marks the one-year anniversary of the guidelines, which discourage the prescribing of opioid medication for chronic pain. The guidelines are meant to be voluntary and only intended for primary care physicians, but are being widely implemented throughout the U.S. healthcare system and having many unintended consequences.

According to the survey, over 70 percent of pain patients say they are no longer prescribed opioid medication or are getting a lower dose. While reducing opioid prescriptions may have been the ultimate goal of the guidelines, it came with a heavy price: Eight out of ten patients say their pain and quality of life are worse. Many are having suicidal thoughts, and some are hoarding opioids or turning to illegal drugs for pain relief.

“I had a doctor pull me off methadone cold turkey after taking it successfully for 15 years for no reason other than the CDC's guidelines. I was in the worst pain of my life,” said one patient.

"The CDC needs to stop practicing medicine without a license. They are hurting more chronic pain patients than they are helping," said another.

"These guidelines are so incredibly wrong. People are already suffering, myself included. And it's going to get so much worse," predicted one patient.

“The ‘War on Drugs’ has devolved into a war on patients,” wrote a primary care doctor. “The government should spend its time, effort, and money on research to find a pain treatment with fewer harmful effects than narcotics and butt out of the doctor-patient relationship.”

HOW HAVE THE CDC GUIDELINES AFFECTED YOUR OPIOID PRESCRIPTIONS?

23% OPIOID PRESCRIPTIONS STOPPED48% LOWER DOSE24% SAME DOSE2% HIGHER DOSE3% DO NOT USE OPIOIDS

The online survey of 3,108 pain patients, 43 doctors and 235 other healthcare providers was conducted between February 15 and March 11 by Pain News Network and the International Pain Foundation (iPain).

“This survey shows that patients and providers are in agreement about the harm the guidelines have caused since their release last year,” said Barby Ingle, president of iPain. “When we have government agencies or insurance companies impose poor practices on the pain community, we see failure. A failure to stop abuse and overdoses, hoarding behaviors by well-intentioned patients, increased use of illegal drugs and, worst of all, suicides increase.”

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https://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2017/3/13/survey-finds-cdc-opioid-guidelines-harming-patients