Hill Briefing: The Politics of Pain Drugs; Public Policy & Patient Access to Effective Pain Treatment 12/15/2003
From: Kathryn Serkes, 202-333-3855 or Kathryn@AAPSonline.org, for the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons; http://www.aapsonline.org News Advisory: More than 48 million people in the U.S. suffer from chronic pain, according to the National Institutes of Health. Recent high-profile news cases of opioid usage have placed the issue on the front pages, including a debate over dependency vs. addiction, who is "deserving" and who is "undeserving," of opioid treatment, and whether pain patients should be subjected to different standards of personal scrutiny than others. The DEA claims drug diversion has reached crisis proportions, justifying increased investigative initiatives that frequently circumvent the Congressional appropriations process. Physicians are prosecuted and imprisoned, and patients sentenced based on pill counts. Medical research and treatment has made tremendous advances in pain management, but is public policy keeping up? And is law enforcement discouraging patient access to treatment as a result of prosecution of physicians under the Controlled Substances Act? This distinguished panel will examine the current state of pain management, law enforcement initiatives, patient experiences, economic impact of untreated pain, funding sources, sentencing guidelines, H.R. 3015 prescription drug database act, and solutions for cooperation between lawmakers, regulators, law enforcement and the medical community. WHEN: Tuesday, Dec. 16 WHERE: B-338 Rayburn House Office Building, 12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. WHO: -- Ronald T. Libby, PhD., professor, University of North Florida, DEA investigation initiatives & funding sources -- William Hurwitz, M.D., J.D., indicted pain management specialist-McLean, VA, "Deserving" vs. "undeserving" patients? -- Rev. Ronald Myers, Sr., M.D., founder, president, American Pain Institute, Effects on African-American community -- James Martin, president, 60 Plus Association, Seniors' & end-of-life concerns -- Julie Stewart, Families against Mandatory Minimums -- Jane M. Orient, M.D., clinical lecturer, University of Arizona, executive director, AAPS, Opioid-phobia & reluctance to treat patients -- Siobhan Reynolds, founder & president, Pain Relief Network, Impact on families & economic issues, DEA Diversion Program (invited) -- Moderator: Kathryn Serkes, president, Square One Media Network To register, visit http://www.aapsonline.org, e-mail Jeremy Snavely at briefing@aapsonline.org, Fax 520-325-4230, or call 800-635-1196 by 5 p.m., Monday, Dec. 15. Briefing & luncheon are free of charge. | |