Long-lasting pain widespread, study finds

WASHINGTON – Nearly a third of Americans experience long-lasting pain – the kind that lingers for weeks to months – and too often feel stigma rather than relief from a health care system poorly prepared to treat them, the Institute of Medicine said Wednesday.

The staggering tab: Chronic pain is costing the nation at least $558 billion a year in medical bills, sick days and lost productivity, the report found.

All kinds of ailments can trigger lingering pain, from arthritis to cancer, spine problems to digestive disorders, injuries to surgery. Sometimes, chronic pain can be a disease all its own, the report stressed.

Whatever the cause, effective pain management is “a moral imperative,” the report concludes, urging the government, medical groups and insurers to take a series of steps to transform the field.

“We’re viewing this as a critical issue for the United States,” said Dr. Philip Pizzo, Stanford University’s dean of medicine, who led the months-long study.

The report concluded at least 116 million adults suffer long-lasting pain, consistent with some previous estimates, but couldn’t say how many cases are severe or disabling.

The economic costs, however, are sure to attract attention in Congress, which mandated the report as part of the new health care law. The report found health care for pain costs $261 billion to $300 billion a year, while lost productivity adds another $297 billion to $336 billion. The federal Medicare program accounts for a quarter of those health bills.