Restricting pain meds can increase costs
Rates of hospitalization, surgery went up
Restricting access to long-acting pain medications can actually increase overall Medicaid costs rather than bring a decrease, according to the findings of a study conducted for the U.S. National Foundation of Women Legislators.
Presenting the findings in Florida, State Rep. Gayle Harrell warned that "with states from Florida to California struggling with historic budget constraints, it is critical that we consider the negative impact of limiting access to important pain medications."
"It doesn’t make sense for us to limit access to prescription drugs that can help a patient avoid more costly medical procedures," she added.
The study used claims data from a random sample of 680,000 Medicaid prescribed drug recipients to determine the occurrence and medical status of patients being treated with opioid medications. It found that patients using long-acting opioid medications had already failed on at least two short-acting pain drugs and suffered from almost twice the number of ailments of patients taking short-acting opioids.
The data indicate that restricting access to long-acting opioids can result in patients increasing their utilization of other, more expensive medical services, such as hospitalization and even surgery.
The study also found that Hispanic patients made up 49% of the prescribed drug population but represented only 6% of those receiving long-acting opioid medications. While these patients were not compared for severity of illness, the data do indicate a possible bias against using long-acting opioid medications with patients of Hispanic descent, the researchers note.
Missouri State Rep. Linda Bartelsmeyer called on the Florida legislature to enact a resolution to study exactly what the impact of limiting access to proper pain management would be, both for patients and for the state’s Medicaid budget. "We believe these issues could best be addressed by the creation of a Florida Pain Commission Advisory Board, comprised of patients, physicians, and pain management advocates," she said.
Restricting access to long-acting pain medications can actually increase overall Medicaid costs rather than bring a decrease, according to the findings of a study conducted for the U.S. National Foundation of Women Legislators.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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