Advocacy
APS Legislative Agenda
The American Pain Society has adopted a three-part agenda to guide its national advocacy efforts. The focus is on enhancing NIH funding for pain research, removing barriers to effective clinical pain management, and providing evidence and analysis to illuminate controversies surrounding opioid use and abuse. Read more...
National Pain Care Policy Act 2007
Pain is the most common reason Americans access the health care system (over 75 million Americans suffer from pain, both chronic and acute). It also drives up health care costs, estimated at $100 billion annually in health care expenses, lost income, and lost productivity.
Uncontrolled pain can devastate a patient’s quality of life, affecting all aspects of daily functioning—sleep, work, and relationships. Unmanaged pain can even suppress the immune system and lead to debilitating depression.
Most painful conditions can be relieved with proper pain treatment. Yet people in pain often face significant barriers that can prevent proper assessment, diagnosis, treatment and management of their pain. For example:
- Many health care professionals have little or no training in pain management.
- People affected by pain are not aware that they can ask for pain treatment.
- Some population groups, including the elderly, women and members of racial and ethnic minorities, are more likely to be under-treated for pain than others.
On July 11, Representatives Lois Capps (D-CA) and Mike Rogers (R-MI) introduced HR 2994, the National Pain Care Policy Act of 2007. This legislation is designed to address many barriers to proper pain management by improving pain care research, education, training, access, outreach and care.