Substance Use Disorder
U.S. overdose death rates linked to synthetic opioids increased more than 45 percent in 2017, likely driven by illicitly manufactured fentanyl, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force recently released for comment proposed updates to best practices for managing chronic and acute pain, as required by the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016.
The Health Resources and Services Administration recently launched a program to provide eligible health care clinicians with student loan repayment assistance in exchange for their service on the front lines of the opioid crisis in underserved communities.
Also in this weekly roundup of health care news: how mandated access to at-home palliative care has made all the difference for some patients; and a town’s first-person account of battling the opioid epidemic.
Clinicians should strongly consider prescribing or co-prescribing naloxone to certain patients at risk for opioid overdose, and educating them about its use, according to guidance released today by the Department of Health and Human Services.
The number of drug overdose deaths involving heroin or methamphetamine more than tripled between 2011 and 2016 to 4,571 and 6,762 per year, respectively, while deaths involving cocaine nearly doubled between 2014 and 2016 to 11,316 per year.
The Food and Drug Administration yesterday approved a mobile medical application to help increase retention in outpatient treatment programs for opioid use disorder.
More than 220 organizations, including the AHA, Friday urged Senate committee leaders to consider the Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act (H.R. 6082) and encourage Senate leadership to bring the bill to the floor for a vote during the lame-duck session.
Also in this weekly roundup of health care news: When rural hospitals close, the health implications are significant; the VA pilots behavioral health integrated model; and a small drug company tests waters of cholesterol medicine market.
This AHA Legislative Advisory offers a detailed summary of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act of 2018, which President Trump signed into law Oct. 24.