Examples of alternative pain management options include chiropractic and osteopathic manipulation, meditation, massage, yoga, acupuncture and cognitive behavioral therapy, which help people deal with pain by giving them strategies to change how they perceive it. Insurance plans may not cover all of these options, which span a range of costs, or limit them significantly, according to the report.
Aside from physical therapy, which Medicaid is required to cover for members who obtained coverage under the Affordable Care Act, the federal health program for the poor has only begun to consider whether to cover nondrug pain therapies, and to what extent, according to the report.
Another layer of complication stems from the fact that evidence supporting the effectiveness of alternative treatments varies substantially. For instance, proof is limited for acupuncture, but more robust for cognitive behavioral therapy, according to the report. Additionally, patients are often resistant to nondrug treatment options.
The Obama administration recently published a national pain strategy that calls for more research into the effectiveness and value of alternative pain treatments. As of yet, some insurers are still unwilling to pay for multifaceted treatment.
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