Complex pain med problems demand holistic coverage, action

As a journalist, there is a certain responsibility to seek out the untold story — especially when it has the power to improve lives.

One year ago, Drug Store News launched a microsite to tell the stories of those suffering with chronic pain. The idea was hatched from a discussion with staff of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS).

{mosads}NACDS was concerned that the needs of pain patients were not being considered amid the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) push to further tighten controls on certain prescription pain medications. While committed to helping prevent the inappropriate and illegal use of these drugs, NACDS feared that new restrictions could jeopardize access for those needing the medications legitimately.

NACDS felt the story of chronic pain patients was worth telling, and we at Drug Store News agreed.

Today, the DEA’s new restrictions, and the culture of enforcement that pervades this issue, have limited access to certain prescription drugs. In cases in which the drugs would be misused, these controls are helpful. However, to the extent that they make it more difficult for patients to obtain medications for the right reason, the pendulum has swung too far. In addition, we have not made much progress in this nation when it comes to addressing the complicated problem of addiction.

All this to say, the chain pharmacy industry that I cover — and have covered every day for the last 18 years — is working hard to serve as a working partner in the prevention of prescription pain medication abuse, and in the preservation of access for those who legitimately need these medications. Pharmacies collaborate with enforcement agencies, and they also collaborate with patient advocates and others, on the complex aspects of this problem.

Amid the recent saturation of this topic in the media, it is worth emphasizing that pharmacies helped to elevate the concerns of patient advocates in the national debate on prescription pain medications. I know this because our publication was there, and gladly helped in the cause. It is unfortunate to see suggestions in the public domain that pharmacies are anything less than totally committed to advancing patients’ necessary treatments.

These are tough issues, and people’s lives are affected on all sides. If ever there was an issue that demanded a comprehensive and earnest approach, this is it.

One opportunity to pursue a holistic solution is presented in federal legislation, the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act (S. 483/H.R. 471). The bill would bring together enforcement and health agencies, and important stakeholders, to generate new and effective solutions to this complex problem.

Some might say that it is disappointing that legislation is necessary to foster collaboration in our government. But amid all of the finger-pointing that currently surrounds this issue, other options do not seem to be working.

Like the plight of pain patients and the perils of drug abuse and addiction, the need for true collaboration on these issues is a story that can no longer afford to languish as “untold.”

Journalists have reported extensively on each side of this issue. Now, the untold story that remains is the true complexity of the challenge before us, and the need to address it as such.

And telling that story, and shaping it for a positive outcome for patients and for society, is a responsibility for all of us. 

Eder is editor-in-chief of the Drug Store News and editorial director of Lebhar Friedman Inc.