ABSTRACT
Chronic opioid therapy is but one of many possible treatments to help people living with chronic pain conditions, and for some the only treatment. This chapter discusses federal and state laws governing the use of controlled medications for pain management. Legal and medical professionals recognize that controlled medications are important to the treatment of pain and often may be the only treatment available for some patients. Risk management will always be a critical component of pain medicine, and the pain practitioner must develop a daily practice routine that balances the tasks of treating pain and minimizing risk. Pain clinicians should strive to understand federal and state legal standards relating to controlled substances, and to use these legal standards as the framework for regulatory compliance policies. The chapter examines legal standards and parallel clinical guideline recommendations and offers the pain clinician suggestions on documentation and basic risk management protocols.
