Do state policies encourage good pain control?
In this report, we update the statistics of Last Acts. A major barrier that prevents us from comparing the most recent numbers with those published in Last Acts is the change made in Wisconsin Medical School’s criteria for assessing state pain policies. Based on the new criteria, Tennessee has improved its scores. A major factor in Tennessee’s improvement is its adoption of the “Intractable Pain Treatment Act (2001),” which consolidates previous pain policies and increases respect for physician’s professional judgment.
