Mass. docs: Don't forget patient needs in fight against addiction
Increased access to “treatment on demand” for addicts, automatic enrollment of all prescribers and pharmacies in the state’s prescription monitoring program, and greater access to antidotes to treat opiate addiction are among the ideas backed by doctors Tuesday as policymakers consider ways to address addiction problems.
In testimony submitted to the Senate Special Committee on Drug Abuse and Treatment Options, which held a hearing at the State House, the Massachusetts Medical Society said it recognized the severity of opiate addiction while advising policymakers “to balance the needs of legitimate patients with pain against the dangers to the public of opiates being in circulation.”
The physicians’ group said, “It is critical that we not forget the needs of our patients in pain to comprehensive medical care that effectively helps them to have the best quality of life that their disease or diagnosis will allow.”
The society, which has more than 24,000 physicians and student members, also called for enhanced education so patients are aware of how to properly dispose of unused medication.
The doctors’ group called the monitoring program an important resource in the effort to curb prescription diversion and said the program must “at a minimum receive all the state drug registration fees that it collects from prescribers and dispensers.”
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