Reuters (5/3, Carroll) reported that “a tiny percentage of people at high risk for opioid overdose are getting prescriptions for naloxone, a medication that could potentially save their lives, a new study” published in JAMA Network Open suggests. Specifically, “researchers determined that a mere 1.5 percent of high-risk patients were prescribed naloxone, which can reverse an overdose, according to the study.” People “were more likely to receive a naloxone prescription if they had a prior diagnosis of opioid misuse or dependence along with an overdose compared to individuals who had those diagnoses without an overdose, the researchers reported.”
U.S. News & World Report (5/3, Newman) reported that “among those who had overdosed before but did not have a misuse or dependence diagnosis, only 0.8% received naloxone.” Further, “people from the Midwest or West also had a lower likelihood of being prescribed naloxone compared with those in the Northeast and the South, according to the report.” US News & World Report added that “the time frame analyzed in the study…predates a December decision by a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel in favor of recommending that naloxone be dispensed along with prescription opioids,” and “in April 2018, the U.S. surgeon general issued an advisory calling for the prescription of naloxone to those at high risk of an opioid overdose, as well as to their friends and family members.”
Related Links:
— “Few at risk for opioid overdose get potentially life-saving naloxone, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, May 3, 2019