Veterans with chronic pain: The VA has decided that Vets don't need pain medication. Can the VA refuse to give a Veteran needed medication?

Yep. VA could care less, and somehow theres no shortage of jackasses that think we should legislate against people that follow the rules to create a "safer" world for junkies- as if we should somehow have the right to dictate what junkies put in their bodies anyway. My advice to anyone at this point would be to never join the military, because if you get hurt you'll spend your life in pain before the VA lifts a finger to do anything about it. Its complete bull shit that a VA doctor's liability should be any concern at all. The first and most important concern should be the vets quality of life, thats what that job is created for, not to employ the latest minority with a medical degree. And how many doctors in the va have killed vets with negligence? You havent seen any change have you? Because va staff know its damn near impossible to get fired. The va is a jobs program, nothing more. Its an organization built to serve vets, yet somehow most vets cant stand it- thats no accident. Statistical analysis of success rates of opioids shouldnt matter- if its working for you, if its improving your life, thats all that should matter. This is the kind of crap that happens when you arent free. People youve never met decide what goes into your body. People you see when you cant possibly avoid it, that could care less about you alter your life without consulting you. We have republicans to thank for a war on drugs thats helped absolutely no one, and democrats to thank for a unionized va, that cares far more about provider quality of life than vets. And we have dumbasses who are one bad day away from wishing they had never supported this system when they find 3 or 4 pills a day could make all the difference. Heres hoping for legal weed, and that your pain goes drastically down with a new knee.

Leave it to the VA to go about things the wrong way. What are blood and urine test for if they don't or won't monitor drug abuse? Why aren't addicts being treated? Why the Gestapo treatment with all vets because some bad apples abused their meds?

I forsee bad results coming from this, particularly when you purposely effect people's quality of life. I believe suicides and workplace violence will increase within the VA. I know some of these vets who are at their wits end, but hope they seek improved medical care outside the VA. This is their only hope, and there are far more than many think.

So, this is American Universal Healthcare/Single Payer healthcare? Great!

Deep down behind closed doors, we are liabilities, the sooner we Die off or drop off the VA health care system the more money they can save for Administration costs such as fatting up the high level GS and SES salaries. Only a very few abused or sold their pain medications, but the whole VA patient community is going to suffer. Reason why we loosing 22 vets a day to suicide. They are frustrated with this being treated like this, I have two ruptured disk in my neck, one in my back abd two blown out knees, these was owed to multiple combat deployments and 22 years of crawling in and on tanks and Bradley’s, was given 2 Vicodin’s a day to ease the pain, you would h@ve never known I took them, active at work, fishing ,family life. Got cut off, no notice, use gabapentin, been living in hell ever since, from time to time I have had my teeth implanted back from breaking a couple in Iraq. Looks like I am going rely on Jim, JAck and Bud, because the VA really don’t give a $hit.

rum and Coke don't need no Stinking VA approval. But I sure would like some medicinal Marijuana.

EDIT: I just caught that you have knee pain and need a TKA, they may have the every right to force your hand on this. You are putting them at a great liability, and your own life at risk continuing these particular medications without seeking resolution. I am not familiar with your full story, so feel free to disregard, but no provider VA or not is going to just give you opioids for that.

I am really sorry this is happening to you, I would suggest the patient advocate if you feel that you are being dealt with inappropriately. If you think that you may be experiencing a medical emergency you should seek care at your local ED, however you must understand that this is not the appropriate environment to seek pain management, and they will most likely not override the plan of care between you and your PCP; but will only rule out emergent situations.

This is pretty irresponsible, at the same time the problem that I have is that a lot of time these people needed intervention from a pain management specialist years prior. Opioids really are a terrible pain management strategy, it also is pretty indicative of a problem when there are signs all over the VA advertising Narcan kits.

I am surprised with our patients from the VA we see, almost none of them are on Gabapentin, lidocaine patches, Pregabalin even a Tricyclic antidepressants... A fentanyl patch which is still an opioid is still pretty gentle and have been found to be more effective and safer over the long term (Again long term) than opioids such as Oxycodone, Hydrocodone. I can understand using a low dose opioid, but every time it is the only therapy, and nothing else is even being attempted. At least this is what I would worry about with my family.

I know there has to be a way to appeal their decision but damned if I know what it is. Not there yet just starting to feel my fingers feeling the effects of being a Navy Typist for 21 years. Keep Plugging Shipmate and I wish you luck forcing the gears of the system.

I am being treated for several severe arthritic conditions. The VAMC in Omaha gives me what I need, without question.

https://www.va.gov/directory/guide/keystaff.cfm?id=2001

I'd go to all three Congress local ofcs, tell all three sets of mil/vet staffs, get names and phones, send in Privacy Act (PA) requests...the site here is for all the main staff of VHA, with their main phone line, where the staff do most definitely answer the phone...I'd go to the patient ombudsmen types under social work at the VA hosp you use normally, get their names and extensions, ask for an explicit referral to anesthesiology/pain management, go also to outside anesthesiology/pain management, and have the whole thing written up, and send it all into all three Congress local ofc mil/vet staffs, as well as VHA, in addition, lemme send this, then I'll send more, OK?

Had my pain meds changed had to take twice as many to get any relief. Told Dr that I only take old meds when I can't handle the pain which gives me relief. Found myself taking the new meds constantly with no relief. They think meds or surgery are the only answer. Surgery would work if we had access to the Doctor's the pro athletes have. Pain management for them is always shots, let's look a less evasive procedures. 15 minutes and on to next patient.

I have been treated for chronic nerve pain for 17 years, This was in Florida and believe me they put me through everything to try to control the pain before they suggested narcotics. I didn't want to take narcotics, as my work in an trauma center ER showed me only the bad side of such drugs.
We moved to Kentucky to get away from the Florida weather and instantly found that they don't "do" Pain meds. First they blamed the Kentucky laws, which don't apply to them anyway and when I called them on it my doctor actually told me that they didn't use pain meds because studies had shown that "pain meds build up in your system and can eventually make you OD" I asked her why,if they build up so badly they didn't show up in blood work and she just looked away.
Another doctor told me that the DEA is responsible. They have promised to "crack down" on the use of narcotics and instead of trying, as they have been for years, to actually get illegal narcotics off the streets, they targeted the VA. He said that sooner or later someone is going to file a class action lawsuit against the DEA. If you think about it, they can now claim that they have curtailed the "drug problem" by a whopping xxxxx% in one fell swoop.
Meanwhile, here the use of herion has at least tripled.
A lot of vets I talk to locally have started drinking to try to cope with the pain. I just want the pain managed so I can live an almost normal life again, but it looks like it isn't going to happen