AAPS Doctors: Sen. Kerry Owes 48 Million Pain Patients an Apology; Dems Don't 'Feel Your Pain'

releases.usnewswire.com ^

[chance33_98]

AAPS Doctors: Sen. Kerry Owes 48 Million Pain Patients an Apology; Dems Don't 'Feel Your Pain'

10/10/03 8:10:00 PM

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To: National Desk

Contact: Kathryn Serkes of the Association of American Physicians & Surgeons, 202-333-3855; e-mail: kathryn@aapsonline.org; web: http://www.aapsonline.org

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Kathryn Serkes, policy counsel for the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), issued the following statement in response to comments made by Sen. John Kerry during the Democratic debate on October 9, 2003:

"Sen. Kerry owes an apology to the more than 48 million Americans who suffer chronic pain. Few of them would see the humor in his flippant remarks about a desperate patient's attempts to relieve a devastating medical condition -- nor do we.

"Substitute 'mental retardation' or 'cancer' in his remarks, and the level of outrage would be voluminous and loud. According to the audience reaction of laughter, the Democratic party that 'felt our pain' under Bill Clinton now finds it fodder for jokes.

"Courageous physicians are being prosecuted for prescribing legal pain treatment. This 'war on drugs' has turned into a war on doctors and the legal drugs they prescribe and the suffering patients who need the drugs to attempt anything approaching a normal life. Patients are having difficulty finding doctors to treat them as a result of misguided drug policy, law enforcement, and overzealous prosecutions.

"The result of recent prosecutions of dozens of leading pain specialists is that doctors are afraid to prescribe opioids, and patients can't get the drugs they so desperately need. Physicians are being threatened, impoverished, delicensed, and imprisoned for prescribing in good faith with the intention of relieving pain. And their patients have become the collateral damage in this trumped-up war.

"Some patients require very large doses, sometimes literally hundreds of pills in each prescription -- a number that may seem alarming to people unfamiliar with current treatment standards in pain management. Other patients report that they have resorted to lying about being heroin addicts in order to get pain medication at methadone clinics.

"The situation has become so critical that AAPS has sent out a warning to doctors:

"If you're thinking about getting into pain management using opioids as appropriate -- DON'T. Forget what you learned in medical school -- drug agents now set medical standards. Or if you do, first discuss the risks with your family." (See http://www.aapsonline.org)

"If this continues, pain patients will be back in the Dark Ages of 'pain clinics' that basically told the patients they had to learn to 'live with the pain' -- except possibly if they had cancer and then they wouldn't have to live with it for very long.

"Prosecutors hell-bent on targeting career-making, high-publicity cases on the backs of patients and doctors. Recent actions show prosecutors have little concern about the trail of destruction left by their actions as patients face crippling pain and gut-wrenching withdrawal.

"If this continues, there won't be one doctor left willing to prescribe the drugs that patients so desperately need."

(See http://www.aapsonline.org for a list of prosecutions against doctors and information on "Project: Communicate and Cooperate" to halt drug diversion and stop prosecution of physicians.)

(NOTE: The Association of American Physicians & Surgeons is a non-partisan professional association of physicians in all specialties, dedicated since 1943 to protection of the patient-physician relationship. AAPS is dues supported, and accepts no government funding, or pharmaceutical or other corporate underwriting.)

[Iowa Granny]

Thanks for posting this. It needed to be said.

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[terilyn]

Excellent article!

[madison10]

Bump

[NonValueAdded]

Bump

[Agog]

I wish the article would have provided a direct quote to what Kerry said. Also, a few real life examples would have also been useful. There is not question that this is a very important issue. I know from personal experience that many doctors seem more concerned with terminal patients somehow getting hooked on pain medication than they do with allowing them to live their last days with dignity.

[joesnuffy]

Well the MDs didnt have any trouble "living" with abortion
Its about time the doctors of America stood by their patients and
stood up to the govt bureaucrats and their mindless war on their patients

[visualops]

Same here, what did he say?
Was it a joke about Rush & meds?
Didn't someone crack a joke about getting grugs from Rush's housekeeper?

[dix]

I had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor, and one quarter of my left lung on April 18, 2003. BTW I was a former smoker when all of this came up . I finished my chemotherapy about a month ago, had my three month CAT scan, and at the moment I am cancer free. There is just one lingering side effect, and that is the pain from my surgery. I take two and a half 750 mg. Vicodan a day.

My job requires me to do a lot of walking, and stair climbing, because I am a realtor who is working at an onsite condo development where I have to show the prospects the various units. If people want to call me a drug addict go right ahead.

When all of this started I researched all of the meds that I would be taking, and I learned about the possibility of addiction. I also learned about developing a tolerance, and I watch my dosage very closely. I have developed a bit of a tolerance, and I just opt for a little more pain instead of increasing the dosage. I think that is where Rush went wrong.

Hydrocodone gives you an incredible sense of well-being. You have to be aware of this, and keep in mind the object is to stop, or mute the pain. Not to go to la la land.

[RippleFire]

Debate transcript is at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5841-2003Oct9.html

I suspect the reference is to this line from Kerry:

What I want to come back to, there are two ways for you to have lower prescription drug costs. One is you could hire Rush Limbaugh's housekeeper...

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

... or you can elect me president of the United States.

(LAUGHTER)

[terilyn]

BTTT

Too important to be missed.

[DLfromthedesert]

Prayers that you remain cancer-free and get through this rough period.