The military has long worried that an over-reliance on prescription painkillers for the after-effects of tours of duty was putting both veterans and active-duty troops at risk of dependency, serious adverse reactions to the drugs and accidental death. The problem was found to be greatest among veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan\u2014particularly those with post-traumatic stress disorder\u2014who, according to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), may have been given \u201cinappropriate prescriptions\u201d for opioids in a misguided attempt to relieve their suffering quickly.<\/p>\n
Now, however, change appears to be coming as the military expands its use of alternative treatments such as chiropractic care.<\/p>\n
Dr. Robert D. Kerns, the national program director for pain management at the Department of Veterans Affairs, told the New York Times that the study \u201cencourages\u201d both his department, as well as the Pentagon\u2019s health system, \u201cto build on \u2026 existing initiatives.\u201d<\/p>\n
If done, that would be good news to Congressional committees following up on last year\u2019s Veterans Health Administration scandal.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have said for a long time that sending a veteran out of the door with a bagful of pills is not a solution,\u201d Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., said in investigating allegations that a Tomah, Wisconsin, Veterans Affairs hospital was prescribing \u201cexcessive dosages of opiates.\u201d<\/p>\n