From 2012 to 2021, medications to treat opioid use disorder (MOUD) increased 104%; from 2020 to 2021, however, it only increased 1.6%.
From 2016 to 2021, naloxone prescriptions dispensed from pharmacies increased from almost 134,000 to nearly 1.2 million prescriptions.
From 2012 to 2021, every state in the nation saw a large decrease of prescription opioids dispensed from retail pharmacies.
Physicians and other authorized users queried state prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) more than 1.1 billion times in 2021
This issue brief provides a one-page overview of the epidemic and select AMA advocacy initiatives and resources.
The AMA and Manatt Health 2022 State Toolkit identifies more than 400 state laws, regulations, policy guidance and other select national actions being implemented to help end the nation's drug overdose epidemic.
“This report underscores two simple facts: insurers will not change their behaviors without increased enforcement and accountability, and patients will continue to suffer until that happens,” according to the letter from AMA CEO James L. Madara, M.D.
This AMA model bill is a 2021 update of longstanding AMA advocacy. Provisions include: Enhanced protections for Good Samaritans who seek help during an overdose event Broad support for needle exchange and syringe services programs Increased authority to distribute and increase access to naloxone Decriminalization of fentanyl test strips and other drug checking supplies For more information, contact [email protected]
Issued September 2021
Physicians and other authorized users queried state prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) more than 910,000,000 times in 2020; more than double compared to 2018.
New national data from leading health data clearinghouse IQVIA show that every state in the nation saw a large decrease of prescription opioids dispensed from retail pharmacies between 2011-2020. Every state also saw large decreases in dosage strength, measured in morphine milligram equivalents (MME) during the same time period.
AMA President, Susan R. Bailey, MD and the AMA Director of Science and Drug Policy, Amy B. Cadwallader, PhD presented a session at the 2021 Rx Drug Abuse & Heroin Summit that highlighted the reasons why data standardization and public health interventions have been elusive and they provide actionable solutions for states, organizations, and policymakers to meaningfully address the nation’s overdose epidemic.
The AMA Substance Use and Pain Care Task Force urges physicians and other health care professions to continue taking action to help reverse the nation’s drug overdose epidemic—and the Task Force also calls on policymakers to take specific steps to remove barriers to evidence-based care for patients with pain and those with a substance use disorder.
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to reverse the nation’s opioid epidemic.