Chronic pain costing Europe billions

The Pain Proposal European Consensus Report, written by experts and policymakers and sponsored by drug giant Pfizer, said chronic pain could be costing Europe as much as €300bn annually. It added, while costs to healthcare systems are significant, nine-tenths of the burden falls on employers, families and taxpayers. The report found 21% of Europeans with chronic pain are unable to work, and of those who are, 61% said it had directly impacted their employment status. In addition, people with chronic pain in employment felt that their condition interfered with their ability to work effe...