Doctors For America

Submitted as a Letter to the Editor:

To The Editor:

I am an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. As a physician, I see our broken health care system everyday and know we cannot afford to give up on health reform. We need to move forward and do it quickly specifically for patients suffering with chronic pain.

Chronic pain negatively impacts overall quality of life, productivity, and psychological well-being. A 1998 National Institute of Health report estimated that pain costs the American public $100 billion each year in associated health care, compensation and ligation costs. Despite this growing burden, efforts to address chronic are declining. This has impacted research funding with further constraints, an subsequently a decline in insurance reimbursements for pain treatments.

In this intense climate of discussion of health care reform, much needs to be done to improve access to pain clinics for patients to avoid exorbitant costs associated with unnecessary visits to emergency rooms. By implemented health care reform we can possible allow patients with chronic pain to have access to pain treatments that would otherwise not be an option for care. Patients should have direct access to, and choice of, specialists. Direct access to specialty care equals quality care and health care savings, and integrated delivery system approaches like the medical home are good ideas that need consideration. Such choice can be achieved if Congress allows patients to privately contract with their physicians.

Patients that I evaluate for chronic pain generally have poor access to health care, due to poor insurance coverage, or no coverage at all. Most of these patients are left with no options for care since much is not even covered by the insurance such as physical therapy and traditional pain medications. As physicians we should have this capability to help our patients relieve pain and health care reform may be our only hope to preserve this.

This is why I am fighting for health care reform here in Philadelphia, PA and in Washington DC with Doctors for America. The medical profession has a responsibility to protect and care for all Americans. We must pass health reform so that together we will begin to build the better health care system that we all need particularly individual suffering in pain.

Sincerely,

Anita Gupta, DO, PharmD