In Brief: Betty Ford Survey Says Pain Patients Want To Give Up Drugs; UC Says Grants Have Big ROI
Betty Ford Survey Says Pain Patients Want To Give Up Medications
A new survey by the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation in Rancho Mirage indicates that many Americans with chronic pain are struggling with opioid painkiller prescriptions that do not work.
According to the survey, nearly 80% of chronic pain patients who were polled were willing to reduce or even forego painkillers in order to try an alternative treatment. Nearly half take three or more painkillers.
According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, physicians and other healthcare providers wrote 259 million prescriptions for opioid painkiller medications in 2012. The death rate from overdoses of such painkillers has tripled between 1990 and 2012, according to CDC data, and as many as 12 million Americans are taking such medications without a valid prescription.
"Many people with chronic pain feel hopeless," said Peter Przekop, M.D. a chronic pain and addiction treatment specialists who treats patients at the Betty Ford Center. "The pain seems unending, traditional treatment often leads to drug addiction, and many wonder if life is worth living."
UC Says Grants Are Leading To Big ROI
A new report by the University of California concludes that some $7.3 million in grants awarded by the grants awarded by its Center for Health Quality and Innovation in recent years will yield a more than five-to-one return on investment by 2016.
According to the report, the ROI should eventually reach $40 million. That includes cost savings, increased revenues, and additional external funding as a result of the grants.
Among the accompliashments: An elective surgery discharge program closely linked to pharmacy prescriptions at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center that increased net revenues by $639,000 during a brief fellowship and would bring in an additional $1.3 million in revenues;
an emergency room throughput program at the University of California San Diego Medical Center that reduced the total number of patients who left without being seen by nearly 800, which projected resulted in an additional $674,000 in annual revenue; and an electronic consultation program at UCSF Medical Center that resulted in projected annual savings
of $434,000 by cutting outpatient consultation costs and avoiding emergency room visits and hospital admissions.
CMS Launches New Program For ACOs
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has introduced a new program intended to encourage more rural providers to participate in accountable care organizations.
The ACO Investment Model targets providers participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program. Through that program, CMS intends to furnish $114 million for infrastructure and care redesign for up to 75 participants in such ACOs. CMS officials say the program will encourage providers to participate in areas that are currently underserved by ACOs.
