A solution to help reduce opioid overdoses

Opioid abuse and addiction impacts all corners of Missouri. Every day it seems we see news reports of another life taken by this epidemic. Nationwide, this epidemic has claimed more than 42,000 victims in 2016, which amounts to 115 lives per day. According to Missouri Health and Senior Services, 1 out of every 66 deaths in our state was due to an opioid or heroin overdose. In fact, last year for the first time ever, opioid-involved overdoses exceeded traffic fatalities in Missouri. This is a public health emergency.

We have had summits, hearings and town halls, we have heard heartbreaking stories about the victims and their families, and some good legislation has been enacted to help turn the tide. But there�s more the federal government can do to defeat this epidemic and save lives.

One solution that would significantly help reduce opioid overdoses in Missouri and across the country is greater access to naloxone. This is an effective, affordable drug that actually reverses overdoses by blocking the impact of an opioid. Sens. Roy Blunt and Claire McCaskill can make a difference in Missouri and help other states combat this epidemic by supporting federal funding to ensure naloxone is more readily available.

One solution would be to ensure the federal government includes funding for co-prescription of naloxone in the Medicaid and Medicare programs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends naloxone be co-prescribed for patients receiving high doses of opioids as well as those with a history of substance abuse. The CDC knows these patients are at the highest risk of an overdose and naloxone is often necessary.

One in three Medicare Part D beneficiaries received a prescription opioid in 2016, and Medicare is the single largest insurer in the United States. A recent study from the Government Accountability Office found 70,000 Medicare beneficiaries received extreme amounts of opioids. These Medicare patients in Missouri and across the country would benefit from the CDC opioid co-prescription guidelines.

A NIH-funded study showed patients who received naloxone had 63 percent fewer opioid-related ED visits per month in the year following receipt of the prescription. The average cost of an opioid related ICU visit is more than $92,000. Considering Medicaid and Medicare pay for more than 50 percent and 68 percent of opioid related ED visits and hospitalizations, this policy change is also a fiscal win.

Another solution for Missouri is to supply police officers with the overdose reversing drug. We�ve seen reports of law enforcement officers responding to calls involving an opioid overdose and inadvertently inhaling or absorbing a potent opioid such as fentanyl. One police officer simply brushed fentanyl off his uniform and required naloxone. Another accidentally ingested fentanyl powder during a traffic stop and was hospitalized. Having naloxone at the ready would not only help our first responders, but also those to which they are responding. Police officers are trained to respond to other medical emergencies: They know CPR, how to stop bleeding and triage victims. Why shouldn�t they have the tools necessary to respond to an opioid overdose?

Congress is currently deciding how to allocate more federal resources in response to the opioid epidemic. We believe one of the most effective things they can do is support the co-prescription of naloxone for those at risk and to supply law enforcement officers who protect and serve our communities.

Sen. Blunt in particular has been a leader in the fight against opioid overdoses as chairman of the Subcommittee on the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. We need his leadership now more than ever on this needed public safety issue by supporting funding for naloxone. Sens. Blunt and McCaskill, and the rest of Missouri�s congressional delegation are in positions to help Missouri and our country beat back this opioid epidemic and save lives.

Ron Fitzwater is the CEO of the Missouri Pharmacy Association.