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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued new guidelines to clinicians for prescribing opioids for pain. CDC officials have stated that previous guidance has been misapplied by doctors, insurers, and pharmacies.
The new guidance includes 12 recommendations which are aimed to promote equity and informed pain management for patients. There are new specific areas of focus such as handling pain relief after surgery and managing chronic pain. Outpatient clinicians including pain medicine doctors and dentists have also been added to the fold so that they can also have evidence-based advice for prescribing opioids.
Much of the 2016 guidance was intended to cut down on opioids versus correctly mediating and diagnosing opioids for pain management. The updated recommendations focus on individualized guidance and care.
Previous protocols have left many patients with severe chronic pain due to their longstanding prescriptions being reduced or cut off. The new guidance is intended to undo some of the unintended consequences of earlier recommendations.
The new guidelines should create greater and more equitable access with more careful considerations and management of opioid usage. Download the bulletin for more details.