Vermont Governor Conflates Opioid Side Effect with Addiction

The majority of Americans who use opioids use them responsibly and legitimately to manage their chronic pain. Today’s statement by the Governor of Vermont incorrectly conflates the issue of opioid addiction with a very common side effect of opioid use, opioid-induced constipation (OIC). People seeking treatment for OIC from one of the three available prescriptions are very unlikely to be addicts seeking opioids for a high. Rather, they would be asking for relief from a problem resulting from medical treatment. Some of these therapies have been available by prescription for nearly ten years, and no credible evidence exists that links these drugs to opioid abuse

One of CreakyJoints’ missions is to start conversations about conditions related to chronic pain, particularly as it relates to all forms of arthritis. Many of our members use opioids as part of their pain management treatment strategy which they developed with their doctor. We’ve seen that it makes a positive difference in their lives. Working with other partner advocacy groups, our involvement with OIC is Different is meant to encourage patients to discuss this condition with their doctors and understand that there are resources available for support, such as our website, www.creakyjoints.org/oic

Opioid addiction and misuse is a very real problem in the United States. However, chronic disease patients cannot be classified as junkies or abusers. Rather, they are patients in need of solutions to help them manage their quality of life. It’s time to find better therapeutic solutions for people combatting pain, and better services for addicts.

AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW

  • Seth Ginsberg, President and Co-Founder of CreakyJoints and the Global Healthy Living Foundation
  • Stephen Marmaras, Director, State and National Advocacy, Global Healthy Living Foundation
  • Mickey Goodwin, OIC patient, Global Healthy Living Foundation patient advocate from Lubbock, TX

About CreakyJoints

CreakyJoints®, now in its 17th year, has evolved into the go-to source for more than 100,000 arthritis patients and their families world-wide who are seeking education, support, advocacy and patient-centered research. Co-founded in 1999 by arthritis patient Seth Ginsberg and social entrepreneur Louis Tharp, CreakyJoints is part of the Global Healthy Living Foundation, whose mission is to improve the quality of life for people with chronic illness. For more information and to become a member (for free), visit www.CreakyJoints.org.

For CreakyJointsJessica Daitch, 917-816-6712