SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Since the Biden administration announced an Overdose Prevention Strategy last year, the U.S. has already increased its capacity to save lives. However, the administration wants further improvement by maxing naloxone more easily available.
“We have taken bold steps to ensure equitable access to care and to reduce stigma,” said Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “As we celebrate our progress, we recognize there is much more to be done.”
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There has been a sharp spike in opioid deaths in recent years, fueled in part by fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that is intended for post-surgical use but is now found in a variety of street drugs. Provisional data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics released earlier this year indicated there was a 15% increase in overdose deaths in 2021 compared to 2020 and a 30% increase from 2019 to 2020.
Naloxone is an opioid antagonist that “attaches to opioid receptors and reverses and blocks” the effects of opioids, the National Institute on Drug Abuse explained. If someone going through an opioid overdose is treated in time with naloxone, the overdose can be rapidly reversed.
“Naloxone can quickly restore normal breathing to a person if their breathing has slowed or stopped because of an opioid overdose,” said the institute.
According to the HHS, the number of naloxone prescriptions filled in U.S. pharmacies increased by 37% from last October to this August. Additionally, the average price of naloxone products purchased in pharmacies has fallen 12%.
“This means that it’s now easier for people to access this lifesaving overdose reversal drugs so that they can help save a life,” the department said.
In order to build on the improved access to naloxone, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra announced that every state, local, and territorial awardee of the CDC Overdose Data to Action cooperative agreement can use a portion of their funds to purchase naloxone. He also announced that the Food and Drug Administration published a Federal Register Notice stating that certain naloxone products have the potential to be safe and effective for over-the-counter use.
“Deaths caused by opioids like illicit fentanyl are preventable with naloxone, and today’s announcement means more life-saving naloxone will be in communities across the country,” said Dr. Rahul Gupta, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Friday. “The latest data continue to show a hopeful trend of a decrease in overdose deaths, so we must remain focused on fully implementing President Biden’s National Drug Control Strategy that will save tens of thousands of lives by expanding care for substance use disorder, making naloxone more accessible, and dismantling drug trafficking operations.”
Also, the number of health care providers with waivers to prescribe buprenorphine for opioid use disorder (OUD) increased by 19% over the last year.
“Buprenorphine is an opioid partial agonist. It produces effects such as euphoria or respiratory depression at low to moderate doses,” according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. “With buprenorphine, however, these effects are weaker than full opioid agonists such as methadone and heroin.”
An HHS-authored research study released Friday found that the increase in buprenorphine prescriptions was linked in part to the department’s efforts over the past year to remove barriers for clinicians seeking to obtain a waiver for the medication.
“HHS is committed to continuing efforts to remove barriers for individuals that are seeking treatment,” the department said.
For the 2023 fiscal year, President Joe Biden has proposed an HHS programs budget that includes nearly $11 billion to support the Overdose Prevention Strategy. This is more than $3 billion more than the 2022 budget.
Funding provided in the budget is expected to “significantly expand efforts related to primary prevention, evidence-based treatment, harm reduction, and recovery support services across HHS programs; as well as funding to bolster the nation’s behavioral health infrastructure.”
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