This COVID-19 public health emergency–the largest health issue any of us have ever faced– has done a couple of things.

First, it has revealed that this country is not–at all–ready for a pandemic. The lack of response to basic needs–like nose swabs, masks and other basic elements of preventative medicine (not to mention the lack of “big things” like ventilators–is causing more people to get sick, and presumably dying, than should be.

Second, it is exposing–for those of us who are paying attention–to how the federal government’s inability (unwillingness?) to do something about people at risk is doubling down on the lack of attention paid to chronic pain patients.

Watching the federal government’s absolute inability (and ineptness) to react to this public health emergency has reinforced–to me at least, and probably you–that the chronic pain patient is being violated by this lack of attention.

So what have we learned?

Something we already knew–that a person with chronic illness (yes, that’s a chronic pain patient) is disproportionately ignored (aka under treated) by the health care “system” that increasingly doesn’t look like a system at all.

So it comes to this. Consider how you would answer these questions:

How is your treatment by your pain physician or primary care physician different now than it was before the COVID-19 public health emergency?

Are you utilizing tele-medicine more in your discussions with your provider?

How, if at all, is your pharmacist, involved in your health care. Are you able to gain access to your prescription? If not, what is happening?

What is the impact on your family, during this time? Are they impacted by what is happening to you? If they are, what is the impact?

If any of these questions inspire you to comment, please let us know in the commentary section.

We think the voice of the chronic pain patient must be heard, especially now!

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