CMS NEWS
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2019
Contact:
CMS Media Relations
(202) 690-6145 | CMS Media Inquiries
CMS Proposes to cover Acupuncture
for Chronic Low Back Pain for Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in approved
studies
Proposed
decision would add new access to acupuncture for Medicare beneficiaries,
as a potential treatment alternative to opioid use, while data is
collected on patient outcomes
Today
the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed to cover
acupuncture for Medicare patients with chronic low back pain who are
enrolled participants either in clinical trials sponsored by the National
Institutes of Health (NIH) or in CMS-approved studies. Currently,
acupuncture is non-covered by Medicare. CMS conducted evidence
reviews to inform today’s proposal, and the agency recognizes that the
evidence base for acupuncture has grown in recent years, but questions
remain.
“Today’s
proposal represents the Trump Administration’s commitment to providing
Americans with access to a wide array of options to support their
health,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “Defeating our country’s epidemic
of opioid addiction requires identifying all possible ways to treat the
very real problem of chronic pain, and this proposal would provide
patients with new options while expanding our scientific understanding of
alternative approaches to pain.”
Acupuncture
is a treatment in which practitioners stimulate specific points on the
body, most often by inserting thin needles through the skin. CMS has been
actively collaborating with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as
part of the Opioids Workgroup and Evidence Generation Workgroup to launch
studies on acupuncture for the treatment of chronic low back pain in
adults 65 years of age and older. Under today’s proposed decision, CMS
would continue its collaboration with NIH to further develop evidence to
inform future Medicare coverage determinations for acupuncture treatment
for beneficiaries with chronic low back pain.
“Chronic
low back pain impacts many Medicare patients and is a leading reason for
opioid prescribing,” said CMS Principal Deputy Administrator of
Operations and Policy Kimberly Brandt. “Today’s proposed decision
would provide Medicare patients who suffer from chronic low back pain
with access to a nonpharmacologic treatment option and could help reduce
reliance on prescription opioids. CMS will work closely with our sister
agencies to monitor outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries receiving
acupuncture to inform our understanding of the efficacy of this
therapeutic approach.”
To
read the proposed decision, visit the CMS website at: https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/details/nca-tracking-sheet.aspx?NCAId=295
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