Empowered Patient Podcast Alternative Non-Pharmacologic Solutions for Pain Management with Chuck Sawyer Northwestern Health Sciences University
Chuck Sawyer is the Special Assistant to the President at Northwestern Health Sciences University, NWHSU, located in Bloomington, Minnesota. Chuck argues for a different approach to pain management given the opioid epidemic and the overuse of opioid narcotics to treat acute pain and chronic pain. Of particular concern is extending the use of chiropractic treatments and acupuncture for Medicaid and Medicare patients.
Chuck explains, "And fast forward to the present day, we now have ten programs, with our chiropractic program continuing to be the largest. But we've added acupuncture at both the master's and doctoral levels, and we have a program in therapeutic massage. More recently, programs in other allied health careers including medical assisting, medical laboratory science, radiologic technology, and radiation therapy. We have a post-bachelors pre-health program for students with bachelor's degrees who are seeking enrollment in medical schools and dental schools, and two online programs just launched in integrative health and wellness and functional nutrition."
"Then you get to the age of 65, and all of a sudden, now your coverage, and even though your access to care is still good in the Medicare program, your coverage is very limited. So aging into Medicare is a problem. And so it's time really for Medicare to catch up with what's happening on the commercial side, and particularly now with the heightened emphasis on non-pharmacologic options for treating pain. It's time for Medicare to broaden its coverage so that patients don't have to pay out of pocket for services that are covered in the Medicare program when provided by healthcare professionals, other than chiropractic doctors and acupuncturists."
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