Maine votes to expand Medicaid, other states may follow
Voters in Maine approved a referendum requiring the state to expand Medicaid eligibility to up to 89,000 low-income residents. As a result of the Nov. 7 vote in favor of expanding expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, individuals with incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level will have access to coverage.
The referendum came after efforts to expand Medicaid legislatively had failed; Gov. Paul LePage's vetoed Medicaid expansion five times. With the vote, Maine became the first state to expand Medicaid through a ballot initiative. Maine's success is expected to spur additional states to pursue expansion by referendum. Voters in Utah and Idaho have taken initial steps to put Medicaid expansion on the ballot in 2018.
Educational webinars on opioids a resource for Indiana physicians
A new webinar series aims to provide physicians with updated education and training resources on using opioids with their patients. Recently launched by the Indiana State Medical Association (ISMA), the free webinars highlight: how to better use INSPECT, the state prescription drug monitoring program; how to have difficult conversations with patients; and review the current evidence for the use of opioids to treat chronic pain, including strategies for safer use in opioid-tolerant patients.
Access to the webinars can be found on the ISMA website and the Indiana-specific page on the AMA opioid microsite.
Naloxone research shows importance of post-administration intervention
More than 84 percent of Massachusetts patients who received naloxone from emergency medical services were alive one year following the administration. The study abstract, published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine, reviewed data from more than 12,000 naloxone administrations between July, 1, 2013, and Dec. 31, 2015. The study's authors concluded that, among other things: "Patients who survive opioid overdose should be considered extremely high risk and should receive interventions such as offering buprenorphine, counseling and referral to treatment prior to [emergency department] discharge."
Read more about naloxone on the AMA opioid microsite.
