OHIP Considers Delisting Chronic Pain Therapies
By Theresa Boyle, Queen's Park Bureau
Originally published in The Toronto Star, January 29, 2002
OHIP is considering dropping coverage for some pain-management therapies beginning in April, pain-management specialists warn.
"We've been given no rationale or reasoning," Dr. Peter Rothbart, chair of the OMA's specialty section on chronic pain, told a news conference yesterday.
He said the move, aimed at finding $5 million in annual savings, would result in the closure of most of the 11 pain-management clinics in Ontario, half of which are located in Toronto.
The treatment in question is a nerve-block therapy, which involves the injection of a painkiller under local anaesthetic. Cutbacks are also being proposed for initial consultations with pain-management doctors, many of whom are anaesthesiologists.
"The Ontario Medical Association is currently circulating a Schedule of Benefits Working Group report to OMA sections for review," explained John Letherby, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health.
"The report includes recommendations on nerve blocks," he confirmed, adding that no final recommendations have been made.
The Schedule of Benefits Working Group is made up of OMA and government representatives.
Barry Ulmer, executive director of the Chronic Pain Management Association of Canada, said the move to delist will be disastrous for the "thousands and thousands" of Ontarians suffering with chronic pain.
"The tragic consequences of not treating pain are undeniable. Too many end up losing their ability to function, to enjoy life, to maintain jobs and preserve their most important personal relationships," he said.
The move to delist the services from OHIP's schedule of fees comes as a result of the 2000 agreement between the Ontario Medical Association and the province. The four-year deal called for trimming $50 million annually in medical services from the public health insurance plan. Last year, some rehabilitation and audiology services were cut.
The government has argued the process is designed to remove OHIP coverage for procedures that have become medically outdated. In recent years, OHIP has dropped coverage for annual eye exams, which are now covered every other year. Pap smears are now covered annually, down from twice yearly. Other services delisted include sex-change surgery, facial-hair removal, removal of acne scars, vasectomies and infant circumcision.
