Amy O’Dell Wilson is the vice president of the New Hampshire Acupuncture & Asian Medicine Association and an acupuncturist member of the New Hampshire Integrative Pain Care Committee. She lives in Harrisville and practices in Peterborough.
I am writing today to share my perspective on the ongoing opioid epidemic in New Hampshire and what can be done to help combat it.
New Hampshire is among the top five states in opioid-related deaths, and this statistic includes far too many whose battle began with prescribed pain medication. Opioid medications are frequently the first and only answer offered for pain treatment. This isn’t the fault of healthcare providers; it’s built into the system.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, nearly a quarter of Americans suffer from chronic pain, with 8.5% managing high-impact chronic pain that disrupts or restricts work and life. That would be over 100,000 Granite Staters.
Acupuncture is one of a range of pain management options that, together with physician-led care, can be as or more effective than opioids for relieving chronic pain. Others include psychotherapy, chiropractic therapy, massage therapy and behavioral health work. Non-opioid pain medications are also becoming more available and effective. I have seen first-time acupuncture patients experience pain relief after months or years of expensive medical appointments.
Unfortunately, education on these alternatives is lacking, and many are insufficiently covered by insurers. Patients who find these therapies effective are often faced with an impossible choice: continue paying out-of-pocket, give up on progress that is improving their quality of life, or face the risks of addiction.
Despite promising legislative efforts to address this issue, like doctor and state Rep. David Nagel’s HB 241, meaningful policy change has hit roadblocks in Concord. Time continues to pass while more of our neighbors are needlessly exposed to addiction risk simply because safer alternatives remain financially out of reach. We can’t afford to wait while lives hang in the balance.
That’s why I am calling on Gov. Kelly Ayotte and the Executive Council to work to make non-addictive pain treatments as accessible and affordable as opioids for New Hampshire residents. Executive action could provide immediate relief while demonstrating the state’s commitment to addressing the root causes of our opioid crisis.
Currently, acupuncture and some other treatments are not covered by state Medicaid. The governor should work toward implementing parity requirements for non-opioid pain treatments in state-regulated insurance plans.
Gov. Ayotte has spoken passionately about combating the opioid epidemic. Now is the time to match those words with decisive action.