Genocide is the intent to systematically eliminate a racial, ethnic, religious, cultural or national group. Well-known examples of genocide include the Armenian Genocide, the Holocaust, the 1971 Bangladesh Genocide, the Cambodian Genocide, and more recently the Rwandan Genocide and the Bosnian Genocide.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide

This post may be viewed by some as politically incorrect… I don’t care… This post will be stating facts and stats… if you get OFFENDED… then you can stop reading… you can leave comments agreeing or disagreeing… I DON’T CARE…

The war on drugs has taken a definite turn to a war on pts and the healthcare professionals that care for those pts.

We have moved from 2000 and the Joint Commission declaring that decade as the “decade of pain” and declared that pain was the FIFTH VITAL SIGN and pt’s pain should be properly managed. As the decade closed, there was seemingly a quantum shift from adequately treating pain to a denial of pain care.

The bureaucrats in Congress over several decades have siphoned off the “trust funds” of social security, Medicare and Medicare disability funds, filling those trust funds with IOU’s. It is estimated that in 2016 the Medicare disability fund will have a negative 20% cash flow going forward.

Over the last seven years our country has amassed more additional debt than we had accumulated since our country was founded 200 + years ago. It was reported today that in 2015 the Feds collected (inflation adjusted) the most revenue EVER.. and yet we spent almost ONE-HALF TRILLION more than we took in.

It has been stated that we could confiscate all the assets from all the millionaires and billionaires in the country and it would only pay about 10% of the unfunded entitlements that Congress has promised to those citizens in our country.

It is estimated that in 2030, as the oldest baby boomer reaches their anticipated life expectancy (83) the social security fund will go into a negative cash flow status at the same time the “X” generation will be reaching full retirement age.

Here is quote from today …

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Man Uses Burrito To Sneak Heroin-Filled Syringe Into Hospital, Police Say (Photo)

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/society/crime/man-snuck-heroin-filled-syringe-hospital-inside-bag-food-photo#article-fb-comments

According to

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Well I have reached out to the buprenorphine advocates a long time ago .. I’V reached out to state senators doctors pharmacies …I mean I have exhausted so so many options …I’m grasping at straws now .. I watched TN pass bill 871 last year which has some good things in it ,but it also has a lot of bad..one being they made the generic form of suboxone illegal.  Subutex which is the same medication… buprenorphine is the opiate blocker not the naloxone ..naloxone only deters I’v users from abusing the suboxone. .. so the state of tn takes away a medication that was helping thousands at a cost of about $1 to $3 per tablet and forces these patients on to a $10 to $17 each medication .. thousands across the state had to stop drug treatment due to cost .. this bill also has a section about TNCARE and pregnant females …they pay 100% for pregnant females .. it does not take a genius to figure out where an addicts mind went with this new law .. AH HA!! THEY CAN GET PREGNANT TO STAY IN TREATMENT that’s saved their life and given them stability ..for most this is the best their life has ever been …so they get pregnant because   loosing the generic with it now being Illegal and the   price increase PREGNANCY IS THE ONLY WAY  THEY CAN AFFORD treatment. . The state NOW foots the bill 100% ….and all these babies being born addicted. .TN ONLY CAUSED THE NUMBER OF ADDICTED BABIES TO GROW WITH THEIR OWN IGNORANT BILLS ..oh by the way call a senator who supported bill 871 THEY CAN’T EVEN EXPLAIN IT TO YOU! ! LOL..THEY SUPPORTED A BILL THEY DO NOT EVEN UNDERSTAND! !  so the state passes a law any mother who has any drugs in their system has to get into treatment or be prosecuted for child neglect or abuse /endangerment. .. Ok think about one who fails a drug screen  for pot ONLY ..that’s a situation I recently saw ..OK state law says get in treatment or go to jail and loose your child. .THEY CAN’T GET INTO ANY TREATMENT. .the only thing they can find is methadone or suboxone …the rest they can’t afford .. or has they have year to 5 YR  waiting list … so the girl who fails for pot gets into the suboxone program ..THAT’S INTENDED FOR OPIATE ADDICTION ..oh they take her cause that’s money the r making. .. she tries to do what they tell her and take the suboxone ..THE STATE JUST CAUSED SOMEONE ONLY SMOKING POT TO GET A BIG MONKEY ON THEIR BACK ..A WORSE ADDICTION. .BECAUSE THEIR NON THOUGHT OUT LAWS !! SO THE MOTHER GOES TO THIS SUBOXONE DOCTOR EVERY MONTH HAS CLEAN DRUG SCREENS. .IS DOING GREAT HAS NO CLUE SHE WAS BETTER OFF ONLY SMOKING POT AT THIS POINT. .BUT ALL IS WELL SHE WON’T GO TO JAIL AND SHE WILL GET TO KEEP HER BABY …WRONG !! SHE GOES INTO LABOUR HAS THE CHILD. .WELL GUESS WHAT IN THE STATE OF TN IT IS MANDATORY TO INVOLVE DCS IF THE MOTHERS R ON METHADONE OR SUBOXONE TREATMENT FOR ADDICTION AS A SO CALLED  “PRECAUTION”. . WHAT SHLD BE ONE OF THE MOST MEMORABLE TIMES IN A MOTHERS LIFE IS TURNED INTO A NIGHTMARE !! DCS TAKES MANY OF THESE BABIES ..THEY NEVER GO HOME WITH THE MOTHER …BECAUSE SHE IS IN DRUG TREATMENT THE STATE FORCED HER INTO!!  …DCS  NORMALLY IF THE MOTHERS GETS TO GO HOME WITH THE BABY  DOES SHIT LIKE …COURT ORDERS MOST TO DO DRUG AND ALCOHOL ASSESSMENTS , PARENTING CLASSES, BLAH BLAH BLAH….THEY GO DO THIS ASSESSMENT..GUESS WHAT THEY TELL THEM WE RECOMMEND U WING DOWN AND COME OFF THE SUBOXONE .. HERE IS WHERE THE HELL COMES IN … THEY CAN’T DO IT ..NOT IN THE 6 MONTHS OR LESS DCS AND COURTS GIVE THEM TO DO THIS .. THEY TRY AND TRY THEY R DECREASING EVERY MONTH .. WELL DCS ENDS UP TAKING THE CHILD. . THEY DIDN’T COME OFF SUBOXONE .. THEY HAD A LEGAL PERSCRIPTION FOR THIS MED. AND LOOSE THEIR CHILD OVER SOMETHING THE STATE FORCED UPON THEM.. CHECK THE NUMBERS ON BABIES BORN ADDICTED ..CHECK THE NUMBERS ON CHILDREN IN TN TAKEN INTO STATE CUSTODY IN THESE  SITUATIONS .. U WILL SEE TN CREATED THEIR OWN PERFECT STORM .. IS SAD TO SIT BACK AND SEE THIS .. I SAW ONE MOTHER THEY TOLD HER IN OCTOBER COME OFF SUBOXONE HER BABY IS 3 MONTHS OLD .. NOVEMBER SHE WENT TO THE DOCTOR GOT HER PERSCRIPTION CUT HER DOSE TO WING DOWN AND OFF BY THE END OF DECEMBER ..2ND WEEK OF DECEMBER DCS COMES TO HER HOME DRUG TESTS HER AND SHE FAILS FOR SUBOXONE. .GUESS WHAT NO DECEMBER PERSCRIPTION …ONLY THE NOVEMBER ONE ..THEY TOOK HER CHILD THAT DAY! !   I PERSONALLY SAW THIS GIRL GO FROM HEROIN JUNKY TO CLEAN WORKING STABLE MOTHER ONLY TAKING SUBOXONE… 2 YRS GOOD TIME .CLEAN DRUG SCREENS FORCED TO STOP TAKING SOMETHING THAT SAVED HER LIFE AND HER CHILD TAKEN .. NOW FOLLOWING BILL 871 ALL THESE PHARMACIES HAVE INCREASED THE PRICE SO MUCH THAT DRUG TREATMENT SUBOXONE IS COSTING AN AVERAGE 1,200$ TO 2,500 A MONTH EVERY MONTH !! ALSO TNCARE STARTED A LIFE TIME 2 YEAR CAP …THEY ONLY PAY FOR BUPRENORPHINE PRODUCTS 2 A DAY 6 MONTHS THEN 1 A DAY FOR A YEAR AND A HALF ..THEN AT 2 YRS  0$ NO MORE NEVER AGAIN THAT’S IT !! RELAPSE HUH WHAT’S THAT ?? THE STATE OF TN THINKS THEY R FIXING DRUG ADDICTS IN 2 YEARS.. ALL ON THE SAME DOSE.. WITH  THE SAME TREATMENT PLAN.. AND THAT RELAPSE IS NON EXISTING .. THEY ALL GO BACK TO PAIN PILLS ..NO 2 YR CAP ..NO HEAD ACHES ..TNCARE PAYS FOR THEM 100% ..NO LAWS TELLING U THE GENERIC OXYCOTTIN IS NOW ILLEGAL ..LOL NOPE …IT’S A PAIN PILL EPIDEMIC THAT’S BEEN TURNED INTO A FREE FOR ALL BY OUR OWN STATE OFFICIALS ..BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO DAMN CLUE OR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IS REALLY GOING ON ..

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This post was on another site:
“This is a very sad post. This is a post that could be about any of us here.
I’m heart sick that we are still fighting with people who don’t see what is really happening to us.
I just received a message that a chronic pain sufferer took her life last night (or that is when she was found). This person was not in this particular group….
I can’t give her name at this point. Her partner has asked me to only tell the story for now.
She was a sufferer for a long time. She lost her med’s about 7 months ago. After trying to find help many deemed her a “drug seeker” . So she stopped looking. She lost her job and a lot of other things. Her sister is getting married tonight at midnight and invited her to attend the wedding. She was in a lot of pain, but wanted to go. She got on a bus and after so many hours could not sit there any longer…it was to painful. She got off and went to a motel or place to sleep. They don’t know everything, but they know she woke late and tried to find another bus to get there.
They found her somewhere and the note said something to do with…
I can’t live like this anymore. I’m not a burden. *I want everyone to know there is nothing in my system and I am not craving anything, but to be human…and I’m not allowed.
I really can’t say more at this point. I don’t know everything. I do know that when she called her family to explain they pretty much told her she was being dramatic.
The reason her partner contacted me was to say thank you. The only thing that kept her going was the thought that there are people out there fighting….She was to worn out, in great pain and lost the ability to keep going. The only other thing I know is when she talked to her partner she said “I’m in so much pain I can’t make it home and I can’t make it to the wedding”. She was literally stuck in place she did not know and could not figure out how to get home.
I really don’t think I will hear anything more. They are completely off the computer now. I just hope if they try to say she was an addict that committed suicide from withdrawal OR they just don’t make it sound like she was a drug seeker her partner stands up for her. It’s easy for the jerks out there to make up stuff after a suicide.
This is the reason we fight..”

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CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE  – might have to click twice

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http://www.romans322.com/daily-death-rate-statistics.php

Notice that drug OTC/Prescription overdose deaths are way down on SECOND PAGE.. using bureaucratic philosophy… should everything above those line items.. BE DECLARED A EPIDEMIC ?

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE  – might have to click twice

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Hospital’s Opioid Guidelines Had Significant Impact

http://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2015/12/30/hospitals-opioid-guidelines-had-significant-impact

In a study of over 13,000 patient visits, the rate of opioid prescribing was nearly cut in half, falling from nearly 53% of emergency room visits before the guideline to about 34% a year later. The patients were being treated for dental, neck, back and chronic non-cancer pain.

The opioid guidelines were supported by all 31 of the hospital’s emergency room physicians who completed a survey on their prescribing practices. Most of the doctors (97%) felt the guideline facilitated discussions with patients when opioids were withheld, and nearly three-quarters said they encountered “less hostility” from patients since adoption of the guideline.

temple university hospital

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http://www.drugstorenews.com/article/pharmacists-ranked-no–latest-gallup-ethics-poll

Members of Congress beat out telemarketers and lobbyists BUT NOT CAR SALESMEN… and we keep reelecting these people ?

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Central Oregon docs start project to curb opiate abuse

Daily drug limit standards will take effect in 2016

http://www.bendbulletin.com/health/3033516-151/central-oregon-docs-launch-project-to-curb-opiate#

In 2016, a community standard will limit the daily dose of opiate drugs prescribed for Central Oregon’s Medicaid patients: No more than the equivalent of 120 milligrams of morphine.

It’s a standard that’s already in use in Washington state and other Oregon counties in an effort to rein in the opioid abuse epidemic. Locally, the dosage cutoff is just the modest beginning of a broader community effort by health care providers to chip away at opioid abuse.

“We’re just trying to put our finger in the dike right now with this one metric and one standard that I think everyone can pretty much agree upon,” said Dr. Steve Mann, the president and medical director of High Lakes Health Care in Bend and the physician leading the local effort.

Between 1 in 4 and 1 in 5 patients is misusing prescribed opioid drugs, according to a review of nearly 40 studies on the subject — all but three carried out in the U.S. — released last week in the Journal of the International Association for the Study of Pain. Oregon led the nation in 2010 and 2011 for nonmedical use of prescription opioids, according to a 2013 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration report.

Central Oregon’s effort is kicking off with support from Central Oregon’s coordinated care organization, which administers care for Medicaid, or Oregon Health Plan, patients. CCO data on Central Oregon’s OHP population were what initially pushed Mann and other providers to launch the opiate project. “We were seeing there were certain patients who were really gaming the system and pushing for higher and higher narcotic doses, beyond those really supported by the evidence,” Mann said, referring to noncancer patients.

At first, the dosage standard will only apply to OHP patients, but in the future, Mann said the plan is for it to extend to all patients, including those on commercial insurance. The standard will be voluntary, but Mann said the group will try in December to get as many providers as they can to agree to the standard, which he said is already in use across the country.

Central Oregon providers report quarterly the number of chronic pain patients they’re seeing who are using opioid drugs. In the coming months, Mann said his group will introduce them to tools to help screen patients for other conditions that might contribute to opioid abuse, such as depression. Throughout the summer and fall, providers will attend a series of educational events aimed at helping them decrease their opioid prescribing.

But several providers pointed out at last month’s Central Oregon Health Council meeting that there also must be a focus on educating and supporting patients as they’re weaned off of opiate regimens. Opioid alternatives to pain relief, such as behavioral support and dietary changes, are not typically funded under OHP.

Megan Haase, a Central Oregon Health Council board member and CEO of Mosaic Medical, a community health center that sees a large proportion of OHP patients, at the March meeting encouraged Central Oregon’s CCO, PacificSource Community Solutions, to expand its funding for pain relief alternatives.

The CCO temporarily funded a multidiscplinary pain clinic based in The Center: Orthopedic & Neurosurgical Care & Research in Bend that offered alternative practices for chronic pain management, such as cognitive behavioral techniques, modified yoga, anti-inflammatory diets and stress-management techniques. Funding for that project eventually ran out and the project ended, said Rick Treleaven, the executive director of Redmond-based BestCare Treatment Services, a drug rehab and alcohol treatment center.

Treleaven, who oversaw the pain clinic, said he’s frustrated that better alternative programs aren’t being funded, but said he understands the local CCO’s budget is restricted by federal policies.

“There are lots of well-researched tools and evidence-based practices far better than prescribing opiate painkillers, but they’re not currently being widely implemented in Central Oregon,” he said.

In Southern Oregon’s Jackson and Josephine counties, where a massive provider-led effort to curb opiate abuse began in 2011, the CCOs have funded alternative treatment programs to opiates, said Dr. Jim Shames, the medical director for the counties’ health departments.

Down the hall from Shames’ office is the experimental, CCO-funded “pain resiliency program” which provides things such as pain reduction movement therapy and behavioral support for people who are decreasing or ceasing opioid use to treat their pain. Limited CCO funding has not proven to be a barrier there, Shames said.

“Our CCOs have taken the lead in helping us develop alternative treatment programs,” he said.

One potential side effect of limiting access to opioid drugs is a potential spike in heroin use. That’s what has happened in Jackson and Josephine counties as opiate abuse declined, although Shames said he thinks the issue eventually will correct itself.

“Until we kind of turn off the spigot and greatly reduce the number of pills in circulation, we’re going to probably continue to see that,” he said. “There is probably going to be a lag time of many, many years before both numbers go down and stay down.”

Treleaven said he expects to see a similar trend here, but said curbing opiate prescribing will be necessary to fight opiate abuse in the long term.

Another problem Treleaven said contributes to opiate abuse is the number of doctors who are overly concerned about addiction among some patients while being unable to detect the true addicts. Doctors also tend to confuse a patient who is physically dependent on opiates with one who is addicted to them, Treleaven said.

“That’s because of the lack of training,” he said. “They can’t read it properly both ways.”

Mann said that’s long been a dilemma and will be a key focus of the education.

— Reporter: 541-383-0304,

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A Former Federal Peer Reviewer’s Analysis of the Draft CDC Guidelines

http://nationalpainreport.com/a-former-federal-peer-reviewers-analysis-of-the-draft-cdc-guidelines-8828910.html
In my former life prior to chronic pain and illness I had many important and fascinating jobs.  One was as a peer reviewer for the United States National Institutes for Health (NIH), Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services (SAMHSA); and New York State’s Education Department, Office of Mental Health, and Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Services.  I reviewed multi-million dollar grants, provided consumer input to agencies, and served on publication committees and focus groups.  When the opportunity arose to comment on the draft “CDC Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain”, I looked forward to reawakening my peer reviewer skills to objectively identify the strengths and weaknesses of the document.

Unfortunately, I found it near impossible and beyond frustrating to review this document in an objective manner.  The guideline is not organized like a typical guideline or tool kit.  It is nothing more than a literature review of the harms and risks of opioids.  It is not objective, therefore, I found it impossible to be objective.  It was biased which made me completely biased (in the other direction).  Reading this document left me scared—really scared.  It left me wondering what happened to the United States and to the rights of patients?  How could this be?  No consumer groups or chronic pain patients were included in their peer review or “experts” process.  A huge no no.  Here is the comment I posted on the CDC site (I omitted my introduction):

As a consumer and citizen, I request you halt further activity regarding these guidelines until a consumer board can be developed—one that is solely made up of chronic pain patients who have experienced primary care access issues to opioid medication.  I also request you conduct focus groups of chronic pain patients who are on opioids.  Only then will you have guidelines that serve the public, the primary care doctors, and the chronic pain patients.

It is imperative a section in the guideline be created detailing how adequate pain control is a fundamental right of every patient.  Point to the Joint Statement from 21 Health Organizations and the Drug Enforcement Administration, “Promoting pain relief and preventing abuse of pain medications: A critical balancing act” which states “Effective pain management is an integral and important aspect of quality medical care, and pain should be treated aggressively… Preventing drug abuse is an important societal goal, but it should not hinder patients’ ability to receive the care they need and deserve” (http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubs/advisories/painrelief.pdf).  In addition, in this section provide a thorough review of the risks of untreated chronic pain, i.e. suicides, depression, unemployment, lower quality of life, etc.

Throughout this document it is mentioned there are no adequate long term studies that prove opioid medication is effective, leading the reader to believe opioid medication never helps patients long term, which is not true.  If you conducted a focus group of chronic pain patients you would understand the complexities of opioid pain management and long term effect.  It became clear to me this document was written in a biased manner when I read the “Effectiveness of Alternative Treatments” section.  It boasted these treatments effective under 6 months.  Nowhere in this document did I see a similar positive citation for opioid treatment for short term use though hundreds exist.  The writers excluded the fact these alternative treatments, like opioids, had no proven long term benefits.  Furthermore, the alternative pharmacological agents, i.e. gabapentin, SSRIs, NSAIDs, etc. are touted as excellent treatments with little to no risks.  The writers should have included information on the hundreds of possible side effects, some very serious, each of these drugs carry.  The risk of death, overdose and suicide is very real for some of these medications and literature citations stating as such was discluded.

The statistics in the Background section do not delineate criminal activity from actual chronic pain patients in a pain management type setting.  It also does not define whether in overdoses there were additional drugs or alcohol contributing to the overdose (polydrug overdose) and whether these overdoses were legitimate pain patients or illegally obtained prescriptions.  These guidelines should not include such statistics.  This is not a paper about criminal activity and misuse.  Only statistics for actual pain patients should be included.

Information must be included describing the fact primary care doctors may be the only opioid prescriber in their area as most pain management doctors no longer manage chronic pain with opioids and specialists refuse to prescribe.  Primary care doctors have by default become pain management doctors.  As such, pain patients should not be punished for this trend.  I did like that you included a few sentences encouraging physicians to be compassionate.  Please expand on this.  Most of us are treated like a nuisance and criminal.  Include information on the difference between physical dependence, tolerance, and addiction/misuse of opioid medications.

Information about actual pain conditions is slim, which is disconcerting.  The fact you include cataracts as a painful condition and not severely painful conditions like chronic pancreatitis, complex regional pain syndrome, shingles, back and spine issues, trigeminal neuralgia, endometriosis, adhesion pain, kidney stones, and more shows the lack of familiarity of the team of writers with true chronic pain populations.

Teach patients basic opioid safety—keeping the opioids locked away and out of teenagers’ hands.  Many patients are naïve to think their teens would never consider experimenting with their meds or visitors won’t snoop through a medicine cabinet.  Providing real-world information will prevent unnecessary overdoses NOT limiting chronic pain patients their pain medication.  Also, the naloxone section should be removed or limited to a sentence.  True chronic pain patients rarely experience overdose and should be dealt with by emergency personnel.

—End of comment—

The CDC is clearly not the appropriate agency to spearhead opioid prescribing guidelines.  They are good at authoring literature reviews on ebola and trying to find cures for diseases.  They are NOT equipped to publish guidelines of this manner.  This is not an epidemic and they are incapable of being objective.  A document like this must be objective and unbiased.

Brooke Keefer is a mom to three sons ages 28, 19, and 4 and has a 2 year old granddaughter. Brooke has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from the State University of New York at Albany. For over 15 years she worked as a not-for-profit director, lobbyist, advocate, and a grants writer, manager, and reviewer in the field of children’s mental health. Brooke suffers from several painful conditions—sphincter of oddi dysfunction (a defect in the pancreatic/biliary valves), chronic pancreatitis, and fluoroquinolone toxicity syndrome (long term adverse reaction of the nervous system to Levaquin). Though these have disabled her, she writes health articles, advocates for patient rights, and runs the Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction Awareness and Education Network website, www.sodae.org.

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