---
kind: "section"
citation: "42 U.S.C. § 284q"
title: "42"
title_heading: "The Public Health and Welfare"
number: "284q"
heading: "Pain research"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/42/284q"
units:
  - "Chapter 6A — Public Health Service"
  - "Subchapter III — National Research Institutes"
  - "Part B — General Provisions Respecting National Research Institutes"
---

# §284q. Pain research

- (a) **Research initiatives—**
  - (1) **In general—** The [Director](/usc/42/11851.md?p=5) of NIH is encouraged to continue and expand, through the Pain [Consortium](/usc/42/17061.md?p=4), an aggressive [program](/usc/42/274l–1.md?p=4) of basic and [clinical research](/usc/42/284d.md?p=b) on the causes of and potential [treatments](/usc/42/11851.md?p=11) for pain.
  - (2) **Annual recommendations—** Not less than annually, the Pain [Consortium](/usc/42/17061.md?p=4), in consultation with the Division of [Program](/usc/42/274l–1.md?p=4) Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives, shall develop and submit to the [Director](/usc/42/11851.md?p=5) of NIH recommendations on appropriate pain research initiatives that could be undertaken with funds reserved under [section 282a(c)(1) of this title](/usc/42/282a.md?p=c-1) for the Common Fund or otherwise available for such initiatives.
  - (3) **Definition—** In this subsection, the term “Pain [Consortium](/usc/42/17061.md?p=4)” means the Pain [Consortium](/usc/42/17061.md?p=4) of the National Institutes of Health or a similar trans-National Institutes of Health coordinating entity designated by the [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) for purposes of this subsection.
- (b) **Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee—**
  - (1) **Establishment—** The [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) shall establish not later than 1 year after March 23, 2010, and as necessary maintain a committee, to be known as the Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee (in this section referred to as the “Committee”), to coordinate all efforts within the Department of Health and Human [Services](/usc/42/201.md?p=a) and other Federal [agencies](/usc/42/8262.md?p=1) that relate to pain research.
  - (2) **Membership—**
    - (A) **In general—** The Committee shall be composed of the following voting members:
      - (i) Not more than 7 voting Federal representatives appoint[^1] by the [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) from [agencies](/usc/42/8262.md?p=1) that conduct pain care research and [treatment](/usc/42/11851.md?p=11).
      - (ii) 12 additional voting members appointed under [subparagraph (B)](#b-2-B).
    - (B) **Additional members—** The Committee shall include additional voting members appointed by the [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) as follows:
      - (i) 6 non-Federal members shall be appointed from among scientists, physicians, and other health professionals.
      - (ii) 6 members shall be appointed from members of the general public, who are representatives of leading research, advocacy, and [service](/usc/42/201.md?p=a) organizations for individuals with pain-related conditions.
    - (C) **Nonvoting members—** The Committee shall include such nonvoting members as the [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) determines to be appropriate.
  - (3) **Chairperson—** The voting members of the Committee shall select a chairperson from among such members. The selection of a chairperson shall be subject to the approval of the [Director](/usc/42/11851.md?p=5) of NIH.
  - (4) **Meetings—** The Committee shall meet at the call of the chairperson of the Committee or upon the request of the [Director](/usc/42/11851.md?p=5) of NIH, but in no case less often than once each year.
  - (5) **Duties—** The Committee shall—
    - (A) develop a summary of advances in pain care research supported or conducted by the Federal [agencies](/usc/42/8262.md?p=1) relevant to the diagnosis, prevention, [treatment](/usc/42/11851.md?p=11), and management of pain and diseases and disorders associated with pain, including information on best [practices](/usc/42/17061.md?p=19) for the utilization of non-pharmacologic [treatments](/usc/42/11851.md?p=11), non-addictive medical products, and other [drugs](/usc/42/11851.md?p=4) or devices approved or cleared by the Food and [Drug](/usc/42/11851.md?p=4) Administration;
    - (B) identify critical gaps in basic and [clinical research](/usc/42/284d.md?p=b) on—
      - (i) the symptoms and causes of pain, including the identification of relevant biomarkers and screening models and the epidemiology of acute and chronic pain;
      - (ii) the diagnosis, prevention, [treatment](/usc/42/11851.md?p=11), and management of acute and chronic pain, including with respect to non-pharmacologic [treatments](/usc/42/11851.md?p=11), non-addictive medical products, and other [drugs](/usc/42/11851.md?p=4) or devices approved or cleared by the Food and [Drug](/usc/42/11851.md?p=4) Administration; and
      - (iii) risk factors for, and early warning signs of, substance use disorders in populations with acute and chronic pain; and
    - (C) make recommendations to the [Director](/usc/42/11851.md?p=5) of NIH—
      - (i) to ensure that the activities of the National Institutes of Health and other Federal [agencies](/usc/42/8262.md?p=1) are free of unnecessary duplication of effort;
      - (ii) on how best to disseminate information on pain care and epidemiological data related to acute and chronic pain; and
      - (iii) on how to expand partnerships between public entities and private entities to expand collaborative, cross-cutting research.
  - (6) **Report—** The [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) shall ensure that recommendations and actions taken by the [Director](/usc/42/11851.md?p=5) with respect to the topics discussed at the meetings described in [paragraph (4)](#b-4) are included in appropriate reports to Congress.
  - (7) **Review—** The [Secretary](/usc/42/201.md?p=c) shall review the necessity of the Committee at least once every 2 years.

## Footnotes

[^1]: So in original. Probably should be “appointed”.

## Source credit

(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title IV, § 409J, as added Pub. L. 111–148, title IV, § 4305(b), Mar. 23, 2010, 124 Stat. 585; amended Pub. L. 115–271, title VII, § 7042, Oct. 24, 2018, 132 Stat. 4016.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### Amendments

2018—Subsec. (b)(5)(A). Pub. L. 115–271, § 7042(1)(A), substituted “treatment, and management of pain and diseases and disorders associated with pain, including information on best practices for the utilization of non-pharmacologic treatments, non-addictive medical products, and other drugs or devices approved or cleared by the Food and Drug Administration” for “and treatment of pain and diseases and disorders associated with pain”.

Subsec. (b)(5)(B). Pub. L. 115–271, § 7042(1)(B), substituted “on—” and cls. (i) to (iii) for “on the symptoms and causes of pain;”.

Subsec. (b)(5)(C) to (E). Pub. L. 115–271, § 7042(1)(C), added subpar. (C) and struck out former subpars. (C) to (E) which read as follows:

“(C) make recommendations to ensure that the activities of the National Institutes of Health and other Federal agencies are free of unnecessary duplication of effort;

“(D) make recommendations on how best to disseminate information on pain care; and

“(E) make recommendations on how to expand partnerships between public entities and private entities to expand collaborative, cross-cutting research.”

Subsec. (b)(6), (7). Pub. L. 115–271, § 7042(2), (3), added par. (6) and redesignated former par. (6) as (7).