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Please add this Action Alert to your

Monday, March 27th To Do List!

CCA Strongly Supports

SB23-144 - Prescription Drugs For Chronic Pain

Hello Karin,

Colorado Center for Aging (CCA) a volunteer organization whose mission is to educate older adults, legislators, and policy makers STRONGLY SUPPORTS SB23-144 Prescription Drugs For Chronic Pain

We think it's most effective for folks to contact legislators on Monday, 3-27-23, one day before the hearing in the House Health & Insurance Committee. Both calling & emailing work, but we have heard from legislators that form letters are less effective.

So we are asking you to use some of the content below in an email or phone call to your legislators.

• Please support SB23-144 - Chronic pain increases as people age. According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), 20-30% of people have chronic pain but for people older than age 65, it increases. As people age, they experience changes in the structure, function, and chemistry of the nervous system. This impacts how chronic pain is perceived and felt. This bill would eliminate overly restrictive policies that limit opioids to a threshold of 90-120 MMEchronic.

• Please support SB23-144 - Chronic pain is too complex for a one size fits all approach for chronic pain. Coloradans living with chronic pain are unable to access the treatment they need, which results in increased pain and other health issues, decreased function, suicides, and an increase in overdoses as some patients attempt to treat their pain.

• Please support SB23-144 - This bill protects doctors and other medical professionals from disciplinary action for prescribing a dose of opioids that is over the recommended level of 90-120 M.M.E. The bill prohibits a provider from forcing a patient to taper solely because of predetermined threshold recommendations that the CDC 2016 guidelines created. These guidelines weren't intended to be applied to people with chronic pain.

• Fact Sheet on SB23-144 - CLICK HERE

Find your legislator - https://leg.colorado.gov/find-my-legislator

Please call or send an email on Monday, March 27th.

Regards,

Co-Chairs of CCA Advocacy Committee Jeanette Hensley and Rich Mauro, and the entire CCA Advocacy Committee

Jeanette Hensley - email - 303-249-5598

Co-Chair of CCA Advocacy Committee

Rich Mauro - email - Direct: 303-480-6778

Co-Chair of CCA Advocacy Committee and Senior Policy and Legislative Analyst Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG)

Have questions - send Colorado Center for Aging an email

Colorado Center for Aging

Colorado Center for Aging is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that speaks with a unified voice for all Coloradoans, particularly those who are 60 years of age and older.