WAC 246-919-935. Consultation — Exemptions for exigent and special circumstances — Chronic pain

A physician is not required to consult with a pain management specialist as defined in WAC 246-919-945 when the physician has documented adherence to all standards of practice as defined in WAC 246-919-905 through 246-919-925 , and when one or more of the following conditions are met: (1) The patient is following a tapering schedule; (2) The patient requires treatment for acute pain, which may or may not include hospitalization, requiring a temporary escalation in opioid dosage, with an expected return to their baseline dosage level or below; (3) The physician documents reasonable attempts to obtain a consultation with a pain management specialist and the circumstances justifying prescribing above one hundred twenty milligrams morphine equivalent dose (MED) per day without first obtaining a consultation; or (4) The physician documents the patient's pain and function are stable and the patient is on a nonescalating dosage of opioids.