CRPS Patients to Receive Fentanyl Prescriptions More Quickly

Ministry Allows Fentanyl Prescriptions Without Medication History Verification

From now on, patients with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) will be able to receive fentanyl prescriptions without the need to verify their medication history.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 17th that, starting from the 19th, it will improve the system so that doctors can promptly prescribe fentanyl to confirmed CRPS patients to alleviate their pain, without having to check the patient's medical narcotics prescription history.

CRPS is a rare and intractable disease that causes severe pain even with minimal contact.

According to the current Narcotics Control Act, when a doctor issues a prescription including fentanyl, they must review the patient's past medication history to check for excessive or duplicate prescriptions. Previously, prescriptions could be issued without checking the medication history only for emergency patients and cancer patients who needed pain relief.

The Ministry has also revised the system to allow fentanyl to be prescribed without checking the medication history when inpatients are discharged or in the event of a system failure.

Jung Jinhyang, Secretary General of the Korea Organization for Rare Diseases, said, "We sincerely welcome the rapid improvement of the system, which will allow approximately 10,000 CRPS patients to promptly receive fentanyl prescriptions," and expressed gratitude for the Ministry's active interest and swift response.

The Ministry stated, "We expect this will help expand treatment opportunities for CRPS patients, who are known to suffer from severe pain," and added, "We will continue to develop and improve the system so that doctors and patients can prescribe and use fentanyl appropriately and safely."