PHARMACIST STEVE

Some of us has always wondered if the CDC really had any statutory authority to generate the opiate dosing guidelines since their primary statutory authority is to deal with contagious diseases. Maybe they didn’t and that is why the then head of the CDC Thomas R. Frieden quickly made public statements that the guidelines did […]

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A USA TODAY investigation finds the Department of Veterans Affairs has repeatedly hired healthcare workers with problem pasts, like neurosurgeon John Henry Schneider, whose license had been revoked after a patient death. USA TODAY https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/12/03/usa-today-investigation-va-knowingly-hires-doctors-past-malpractice-claims-discipline-poor-care/909170001/ Neurosurgeon John Henry Schneider racked up more than a dozen malpractice claims and settlements in two states, including cases alleging […]

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‘SEAL Team’ Exposes VA: ‘A Health Care System That Runs Like the Post Office’ https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/culture/lindsay-kornick/2019/04/25/seal-team-exposes-va-healthcare-system-runs-post-office CBS’s SEAL Team has been mostly quiet this season regarding social issues. In its place, recent episodes have taken a deeper perspective into the lives of soldiers during and after deadly missions. This week’s episode offers the latest example with a […]

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https://www.dovepress.com/efficacy-of-opioids-versus-placebo-in-chronic-pain-a-systematic-review-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-JPR Conclusion This meta-analysis of FDA-required double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials of opioid analgesics for the treatment of chronic pain has shown that there is an ample evidence base supporting the efficacy of opioid analgesics for at least 3 months’ duration, a standard period for the evaluation of treatments for chronic pain and other chronic […]

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AMA welcomes CDC’s revised view on opioids guidelines “The AMA appreciates that the CDC recognizes that patients in pain require individualized care and that the agency’s 2016 guidelines on opioids have been widely misapplied. The guidelines have been treated as hard and fast rules, leaving physicians unable to offer the best care for their patients.” I have stated many […]

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Rocky Care at For-Profit Rehab https://www.medpagetoday.com/publichealthpolicy/ethics/79403 In the midst of the opioid crisis, drug rehabilitation and treatment facilities might be more popular than ever. Mother Jones conducted a 5-month investigation into American Addiction Centers (the only such chain that’s publicly traded) to highlight the for-profit rehab ecosystem in the U.S. Mother Jones found myriad problems […]

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Fox News Report About Harms to CPP’S due to CDC Guideline

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A local foundation aims to curb the opioid crisis https://abc57.com/news/a-local-foundation-aims-to-curb-the-opioid-crisis SOUTH BEND, Ind – The 525 Foundation held its annual gala on Thursday to bring awareness and help change the opioid crisis. “We are here to remember Nick and Jack and the thousands of others who unknowingly dying at hands of prescription drugs,” 525 Foundation […]

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No Shortcuts to Safer Opioid Prescribing https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1904190 Since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released its Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain in 2016,1 the medical and health policy communities have largely embraced its recommendations. A majority of state Medicaid agencies reported having implemented the guideline in fee-for-service programs by 2018, and […]

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AMA welcomes CDC’s revised view on opioids guidelines https://www.ama-assn.org/press-center/ama-statements/ama-welcomes-cdc-s-revised-view-opioids-guidelines Statement attributable to  Patrice A. Harris, M.D. President-elect of the American Medical Association Chair, AMA Opioid Task Force “The AMA appreciates that the CDC recognizes that patients in pain require individualized care and that the agency’s 2016 guidelines on opioids have been widely misapplied. The guidelines have been treated as […]

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