Pain advocates petition for support of FDA Commissioner

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. - Oct. 8, 2014 - PRLog -- This week, the U.S. Pain Foundation and more than a dozen patient advocacy organizations sent a letter to  the U.S. Sectary of Health and Human Services voicing their unequivocal support of FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg.

The letter was sent in response to recent calls for Commissioner Hamburg to step down from her post. Anti-Opioid organizations such as “Fed Up” have been critical of Commissioner Hamburg’s recent rulings on opioid medications.

“There is a real epidemic of abuse of prescription medications in this country,”
said Paul Gileno, Founder and President of the U.S. Pain Foundation. “However, further restricting access to necessary treatment for people with pain will do little to address the problem of preventing, identifying, and treating individuals with addiction disorders,” Addiction is a disease, removing pain medications from pharmacies won’t prevent addicts from getting high.”

Those living with chronic pain are not abusing prescription medications, but instead rely on  them to live responsibly, healthy, productive lives

Government data demonstrates that 82 percent of misused and abused opioids were obtained illegally. Restricting a doctor’s ability to prescribe pain medication will likely not reduce the number of opioid overdoses. The Institute of Medicine has reported that 100 million Americans are affected by chronic pain.  Uncontrolled pain devastates a person’s quality of life, affecting all aspects of daily functioning including sleep, work, social activities and relationships. When prescribed and properly administered to target populations, the incidence of abuse and addiction is extremely low.

Commissioner Hamburg and her team at the FDA have taken a balanced approach to managing the needs of those living with chronic pain, and to prevent further misuse of prescription medications.

About the U.S. Pain Foundation:

The U.S. Pain Foundation is a national non-profit organization created by people with pain for people with pain that is based in Middletown, Connecticut.  The mission is to inspire, empower and educate the pain community while advocating by being the voice for those who cannot speak. To learn more about the organization, view the website at: http://www.uspainfoundation.org/