More than 150 medical, public health, patient and health care organizations came together this week, using the power of their collective voices to ask the nation’s governors for increased emphasis on overdose prevention and treatment as part of the effort to combat prescription drug abuse, misuse, overdose and death.
At least three-quarters of states are expected to introduce legislation this year related to prescription drug misuse, diversion, overdose and death, but the predominant theme for that legislation focuses on restricting the supply of opioids. In a letter led by the AMA, National Safety Council and Harm Reduction Coalition, these groups urged the National Governors Association to take action to help treat those suffering from substance use disorders and enact other measures to save lives from opioid overdose
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that deaths involving prescription opioids remain unacceptably high—more than 16,000 lives lost each year. At the same time, there has been a substantial increase in deaths from heroin. The CDC recently reported 8,257 heroin-related deaths in 2013—a 39 percent increase from 2012’s 5,925 deaths.
Treatment and prevention efforts, the “demand-side” strategy, rather than punitive measures can be effective in reducing opioid-related misuse, overdose and death.
“States have shown that they can restrict prescription opioids, but the unintended effects of those policies without comparable attention to addiction treatment access have helped lead to the increase in heroin use,” the letter said. “No one wants that trend to continue, but without effective demand-side measures, it will.”
The organizations urged action that includes:
- Increasing access to and use of naloxone, the opioid overdose-reversal drug, in every state.
- Providing “Good Samaritan” protections—allowing others to aid an overdose victim without fear of being arrested.
- Increasing access to medication-assisted treatment services and non-opioid-based treatments.
Meanwhile, physicians and other prescribers must carefully examine prescribing practices, the letter said. This includes consulting prescription drug monitoring programs when clinically indicated.
The NGA is meeting in Washington, D.C. this week to discuss priority state issues. Meanwhile, in a meeting hosted today by the Alliance to Prevent the Abuse of Medicines, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker and Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe met with lawmakers and representatives from health care, including the AMA, to discuss the economic impact of prescription drug misuse, in the hope that meeting face to face will kick the conversation into higher gear.
