“Ultimately, the economic situation has not changed in any meaningful way, despite our best efforts,” reads a letter posted on the organization’s website. APF hopes to continue transferring content from various information, education and support programs to other organizations.
APF was instrumental in the enactment of several provisions of the National Pain Care Policy Act in the Health Reform Bill that led to a report issued last year by the Institute of Medicine, describing the number of U.S. citizens living with pain.
“Despite this, the current climate towards improving the plight of people with pain in the U.S. continues to be precarious and hostile,” reads the letter. “As you unfortunately know, the need for public outcry around the needs of Americans struggling with pain conditions is greater today than ever before in light of the multi-front assault occurring daily on our right to dignified care. Misguided state and federal policies are impeding access to appropriate and reasonable medical care for people struggling with pain, and deterring even the most compassionate medical providers from treating anyone with pain conditions.”
APF made its announcement on Tuesday, the same the U.S. Senate Finance Committee launched an investigation into narcotic painkiller groups, APF received a letter from senators suggesting a connection between large scale accidental death and addiction and the promotion of misleading information driven by drug companies, according to a Huffington Post report. Approximately 90 percent of APF’s funding in 2010 was from the drug and medical device industry, according to a ProPublica investigation last December, which also suggested the organization’s material “played down” the risk of opioids.
More Articles on Pain Management:
New Ohio ER Guidelines Target Painkiller Overprescribing
Joint Pain Relief Device May Decrease Painkiller Use
Zalicus Neuropathic Pain Drug Enters Clinical Trials
