On January 1st, 2019, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee stopped covering the prescription drug Oxycontin, an opioid commonly used for pain. It was seeing too many newborns experiencing opioid withdrawal from drugs that their mothers took during pregnancy.
On the same date, Blue Cross started covering acupuncture treatments for chronic pain. The change was partly due to an article in The Journal of Pain, which shows that the relief people get from acupuncture cannot be explained by the placebo effect – in other words, acupuncture works, and it is a viable substitute for addictive pain relievers.
Acupuncture also has a long history of safety, especially when performed by a licensed acupuncturist.
It’s encouraging to see acupuncture gaining the acceptance and credibility it deserves. For the full story about Blue Cross, click here.