I have written previously about the raging opioid epidemic in Ohio.  Attacking and reversing this tidal wave will require many weapons, resources and time.  Opioid addiction is a crafty and elusive adversary that will be difficult to vanquish.  Our battle plan will have to be nimble and adjusted over time, much as military leaders must do in actual armed conflict.

Here in Ohio and elsewhere, physicians must abide by new prescribing restrictions.  Prior to prescribing a controlled pain medicine, doctors are required to check the patients OARRS report online, which catalogues the patient’s prescription history.  This would alert us if the patient was receiving controlled medicines from various pharmacies that the patient might not disclose to us.  Physicians and the public are encouraged to seek non-narcotic alternatives for pain relief.  If opioids are prescribed for acute pain, there is now a limit on the length of opioid treatment that is permitted.  There are exceptions which require additional physician documentation.  The above restrictions do not apply to chronic pain or pain suffered by individuals with cancer or are in hospice.  Importantly, these rules do not apply to medication-assisted treatment of opioid addiction.

There has been opposition to the above regulations from patients with chronic pain who are having difficulty getting their pain medicine prescriptions filled.  They are being turned away by their doctors, or told to consult with pain management physicians who have expertise in this discipline.  These specialists are extremely busy, and it can be very challenging for patients to secure a timely appointment with them.  For a patient with chronic pain, this can be a vexing and agonizing situation.  And, if this patient proceeds to the emergency room, these physicians may be understandably reluctant to accede to a patient’s request for controlled pain medicines.

I think and hope that these issues will sort out.  One can’t expect that new reforms will be flawless from the outset.  Perhaps, the net we are using now to restrict pain medication use is overly wide, as many initial proposed solutions often are, but we will narrow it with more time and experience.

There is no law, regulation or policy that does not cause friendly fire casualties or undesirable outcomes.   Our criminal justice system, for example, demands a not guilty verdict, even if an individual has committed a crime if a designated proof standard has not been reached.  Society has accepted a balance in the courts and elsewhere.  We reject using a wider judicial net that would capture more criminals but would ensnare too many innocents.  It’s an imperfect system by design.

Since no system is perfect, we should not aspire to achieve this standard.  We have to tolerate some level of error and fallout.  Similarly, the medicines that doctors prescribe are deemed by the Food and Drug Administration to be safe and effective, but we all know that they are neither 100 percent safe nor effective.

Our opioid strategy is a work in progress.  Surely, we all agree on the destination.  But, the path to reach that point will be marked by many pitfalls, slippery slopes, and difficult terrain.

Michael Kirsch is a gastroenterologist who blogs at MD Whistleblower.

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