PROP, Physicians for "Responsible" Opioid Prescribing, submitted a petition to the FDA. It will have three major effects if granted for non-cancer pain patients. They're asking for the following label changes on ALL opioids:
1) Limit patients to 90 days on opioids, eliminating their year in CP/IP patients because pain isn't considered chronic for the first six months
2) Change FDA approved indication to read "severe pain", instead of "moderate to severe pain" or "moderately-severe to severe pain".
3) Limit the daily dose of all combined opioids to 100mg MED (morphine equivalent dosage). That's roughly 60mg/day oxycodone/OxyContin/OxyIR/Roxicodone, 30mg/day oxymorphone/Opana, 24mg/day hydromorphone/Dilaudid/Exalgo, 100mg/day hydrocodone/Norco/Vicodin, or 25mcg/hr fentanyl/Duragesic patches.
Thankfully, PROMPT (Professionals for Rational Opioid Monitoring & PharmacoTherapy) and many others have decided to fight back.
I urge everyone to write comments and explain why it will hurt CP/IP patients and do little to curb opioid abuse.
If anyone has any stories of their struggles to get adequate, or any, opioids for pain relief, please send them to the FDA and/or email them to me in my new letter to them as a founding member of CPSA.
Please visit:
PROP Petition (official government site for the petition)