Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Given The Scope Of This Crisis,' PhRMA CEO Backs Guidelines Limiting Opioid Prescriptions
Stat: PhRMA CEO Announces Support For Limiting Opioid Prescriptions
The pharmaceutical industry now supports limiting prescriptions of opioid painkillers to a seven-day supply for acute pain management, PhRMA CEO Stephen J. Ubl announced Wednesday at a meeting of the White House’s opioid abuse commission. “Too often, individuals receive a 30-day supply of opioid medicines for minor treatments for short term pain,” Ubl said. “Overprescribing and dispensing can lead to patients taking longer than necessary and excess pills falling into the wrong hands.” (Joseph, 9/27)
The Hill: Drugmaker Group Backs Limiting Opioid Supplies
A powerful drug industry trade group announced its support for limiting a patient’s supply of opioids to seven days for first-time acute pain treatment, as a way to curb the opioid epidemic plaguing the country. “Too often individuals receive a 30-day supply of opioid medicines for minor treatments or short-term pain,” Stephen Ubl, president and CEO of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, said. (Roubein, 9/27)
In other news on the epidemic —
Stat: Relaxing Privacy Rules To Fight Opioid Addiction Draws Fire From Treatment Advocates
The on-the-ground groups targeting the opioids crisis almost universally support Washington’s efforts to direct more resources and flexibility toward their work. But a new coalition is cautioning that one proposed federal change — supported both by lawmakers and the Trump administration’s opioid commission — could actually hurt the people they’re all trying to help. At the center of the controversy: an effort to relax federal privacy rules for substance abuse treatments. (Mershon, 9/27)
KCUR: Kansas’ Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Gets $178K Federal Grant
A prescription drug monitoring program in Kansas will receive a federal grant worth more than $178,000 to help fight the opioid crisis. The Kansas Board of Pharmacy oversees K-TRACS, a system for monitoring prescriptions for controlled substances. Board Executive Secretary Alexandra Blasi says doctors, dentists and pharmacists who participate in the program report their prescription activity to the state to verify a patient’s history. (Shaar, 9/27)
Richmond Times-Dispatch: Fatal Overdoses Down, Overdoses Up Across Region So Far In 2017
While the number of people who have overdosed on opioids in Richmond and Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico counties rose about 40 percent year-over-year as of mid-September, deaths from the drugs are down 19 percent from the 95 local authorities had tracked by this point in 2016. (Burnell Evans, 9/27)
Miami Herald: Miami May Sue Big Pharma Over Opioid Crisis
City commissioners on Thursday are poised to hire a private law firm to pursue a complaint against prescription opioid manufacturers and distributors that would seek compensation for the resources Miami has been forced to dedicate to reviving overdose victims, policing drug-related crimes and healthcare. (Smiley, 9/27)
