Dr. Sherry McAllister, DC: Disparities in Pain Management and Opioid Addiction

Sherry McAllister, DC, M.S. (Ed) CCSP, President of the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress, cites data showing how patients’ lack of access to non-prescribing providers (NPPs) for pain relief can lead to opioid dependence and addiction.

Further Reading:

• Gallup-Palmer College of Chiropractic Annual Report: Americans’ perceptions of chiropractic. Washington, DC: Gallup, Inc. 2016 [updated 2016 Oct 18; cited 2017 Feb 22.] Available from:
https://www.palmer.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/gallup-report-palmer-college-2016.pdf

• Goertz CM, Long CR, Vining RD, Pohlman KA, Walter J, Coulter I. Effect of Usual Medical Care Plus Chiropractic Care vs Usual Medical Care Alone on Pain and Disability Among US Service Members With Low Back Pain: A Comparative Effectiveness Clinical Trial. JAMA Network Open. 2018;1(1):e180105. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.0105 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30646047/

• Whedon, J.M., Bezdjian, S., Dennis, P. et al. Cost comparison of two approaches to chiropractic care for patients with acute and sub-acute low Back pain care episodes: a cohort study. Chiropractic and Manual Therapies (Dec. 2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-020-00356-z

• Whedon JM, Kizhakkeveettil, A, Toler A, MacKenzie T, Lurie J, Hurwitz E, Bezdjian S, Bangash M, Uptmor S, Rossi D, Haldeman S. Initial Choice of Spinal Manipulative Therapy for Treatment of Chronic Low Back Pain Leads to Long-term Risk of Adverse Drug Events Among Older Medicare Beneficiaries. Spine 2021
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33882542/

• Whedon JM, Toler AWJ, Kazal LA, Bezdjian S, Goehl JM, Greenstein J. Impact of Chiropractic Care on Use of Prescription Opioids in Patients with Spinal Pain. Pain Med. 2020 Dec 25;21(12):3567-3573. doi: 10.1093/ pm/pnaa014. PMID: 32142140.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32142140/

• Corcoran KL, Bastian LA, Gunderson CG, Steffens C, Brackett A, Lisi AJ, Association Between Chiropractic Use and Opioid Receipt Among Patients with Spinal Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis, Pain Medicine, Volume 21, Issue 2, February 2020, Pages e139–e145, https://doi.org/10.1093/pm/pnz219

• Consumer Reports, (2016, June). Pain Management: Which Treatment Is Right for You? Consumer Reports, 2016, June.
https://www.consumerreports.org/pain-relief/pain-management-treatment-right-for-you/

• McGowan, J. R., & Suiter, L. (2019). Cost-Efficiency and Effectiveness of Including Doctors of Chiropractic to Offer Treatment Under Medicaid: A Critical Appraisal of Missouri Inclusion of Chiropractic Under Missouri Medicaid. Journal of chiropractic humanities, 26, 31–52. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31871437/