To: All my patients
From: Dr Scoville
Regarding: Narcotic Prescriptions and Narcotic Oversight
It has come to my attention that some of my patients who have chronic pain and for whom I have been prescribing narcotics, that such patients are not able to get their insurance to cover their medications UNLESS the patient and our clinic are adhering to several guidelines dictated by the FDA.
My policy for narcotic prescriptions has been a simple approach of telling my patients that there is only ONE doctor prescribing a narcotic, and that if there is at any time more than one doctor prescribing narcotics, then I will cease to prescribe thereafter. This policy has worked for me and for my patients and I do periodically check with the State Board of Pharmacy to see if a given patient is adhering to my policy. However this policy does not meet the guidelines prescribed by the FDA and therefore in order for insurance to provide coverage for narcotics, a patient wanting insurance coverage will need to be seen by a Pain Specialist – someone trained to work with chronic pain patients and follow these strict FDA guidelines.
Therefore patients have three options when coming to renew narcotics from my office as follows:
Please let our clinic know which of these options you wish to pursue. We continue to appreciate your trust in our care and hope that you will continue to work with us as we work with you to provide you the best of rheumatology care.
Dr. Scoville and Staff
February 14, 2022
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