Connecticut Action Center

The Pain and Policy Study Group’s Pain Report measures the extent that controlled substances and professional practice policies contain language that can potentially enhance or impede pain management. A research methodology was developed to grade each state based on the quality of its pain policy. Connecticut’s grades were: C in 2000, C in 2003, C in 2006 and a B in 2007. In order for Connecticut to continue to improve this grade, our state will need to eliminate any policies that impede pain management, and increase the number of policies that enhance pain management.

Controlled Substances Regulations:
Regs., Conn State Agencies # 21a-326-1. Definitions.
(e) “Therapeutic or Other Proper Medical or Scientific Purposes” means the following: (1) The prescribing, dispensing, or administering of a controlled substance for treatment of a specific disease or medical condition, recognized by medical consensus and/or stated in the literature of the manufacturers of the controlled substances as being the purpose for which the controlled substance is intended”.

Under Federal law, physicians are not restricted to FDA approved indications listed in the manufacturer’s literature. Because prescribing for other than (e) is considered unprofessional conduct, it appears that “off label” prescribing of controlled substances would be unprofessional conduct. Also, what constitutes a “medical consensus” and who determines this?