The cost of chronic pain

There is a saying that being poor is expensive. From personal experience, I know this to be true. But I think it also needs to be said that, especially in the United States, chronic illness can be quite expensive as well. In fact, there is a huge intersection between poverty and disability/illness. As with many intersections, it is a chicken-or-egg scenario, difficult to determine which is begetting which. But one thing is clear: there are often blind spots about these expenses in the medical community and how they can impact chronically ill people already struggling with finances. Recently I attended a seminar on the topic and was immediately struck by the lack of attention to the expense of the nonpharmacological treatments being advised to take the place of opioids. I watched the doctors on the panel enthusiastically promote acupuncture, yoga, chiropractic care, biofeedback, massage, lidocaine patches, and TENS units. Yet, many of these treatments are not covered by most insurance plans and can be very expensive to pay for out of pocket. In the case of something like massage or acupuncture, it can cost well over $100 per visit. Since these therapies usually require multiple visits to achieve long-term outcomes, it can cost patients hundreds or thousands of dollars to cover the costs of such treatments. Considering that most people with disability live below the poverty level, many people with chronic pain may not be in a financial position to fund these alternative treatme...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health Health care Health policy Pain Management Source Type: blogs