If subutex is buprenorphine why doesn't it work for pain? it's used for addiction but what's the difference?

Works for pain: Buprenorphine/subutex does work for pain.

It does work fo pain: It can be and is prescribed for pain, but in the absence of the Naltrexone component of suboxone, it will be fraught will all the problems of any other narcotic, including gradual escalation of dose to achieve the same effect.

Subs ; pain: It does work for pain. The drug Buprenorphine was developed as a pain medicine and later found to be useful as a detoxing agent. In the United States it is a matter of law that it can only be used for detox. This is rather unfortunate because it's a decent pain medicine.