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WYDEN-SMITH LEGISLATION WILL HELP PATIENTS,
FAMILIES, HEALTH PROVIDERS FIGHT PAIN
“Conquering Pain Act” would provide
information, assistance
for those in chronic pain and at end of life
May 11, 2005
Washington, DC – U.S.
Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) today introduced
legislation to help Americans living and dying in pain, support
their families and assist health care providers in getting information
and guidance to treat severe pain. The Conquering Pain Act will
provide an opportunity for the country to develop and test different
ways of provide pain management to patients 24 hours a day, seven
days a week.
“Almost half of the dying
experience moderate to severe pain in the last days of their lives,
and millions more Americans live with chronic, crippling pain
– but it doesn’t have to be that way,” said
Wyden. “The medical technology and know-how exist today
to reduce that suffering, and the Conquering Pain Act will help
providers, patients and families find the facts about help for
pain.”
“Too many people endure
chronic pain and spend their last days suffering,” said
Smith. “We often overlook pain management, but it is a vital
component of care giving. Sometimes, helping with pain is simply
the best we can do.”
Chronic or severe pain is believed
to affect as many as 50 million Americans, and is often left untreated
or under-treated especially among older patients, African Americans,
Hispanics and other minorities, and children. As many as 50 percent
of patients experience moderate to severe pain at least half the
time in their last days of life, and 70 to 80 percent of cancer
patients experience significant pain during their illness. One
in seven nursing home residents experience persistent pain that
may diminish their quality of life. The Conquering Pain Act will
make the effective treatment of pain a national priority in the
following ways:
$ Establishing six “National
Family Support Networks” to assist physicians and families
of patients in pain, ensuring that Americans in every community
– including providers handling difficult cases – will
have a 24-hour resource for up-to-date information and guidance
to deal with pain. Services the networks may provide include counseling,
community leadership in expanding access to pain care, caregiver
support; they may also help to promote research on treating pain
or even set up telemedicine links between communities to ensure
24-hour assistance to providers, families and patients in pain.
-Requiring the development of
an Internet site or the enhancement of an existing Internet site
to provide pain management guidelines to individuals, health care
practitioners and health facilities.
-Requiring the Secretary of
Health and Human Services to mount education projects across the
country to improve pain management.
-Requiring Medicare, Medicaid
and other Federally administered health programs to tell patients
that they have a right to pain management.
-Mandating a report by the Surgeon
General on the state of pain and symptom management in the United
States.
The bill also requires Federal
research on how the costs of treating pain, Medicare reimbursements
and insurance company policies may keep some Americans from getting
the pain treatment they need, and also calls on the government
to better coordinate its efforts on pain policy, research and
information. The Conquering Pain Act will provide for demonstration
projects to help set professional performance standards for treating
pain and to deal specifically with pain in end-of-life care.
The bill is expected to be referred
to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.