WOONSOCKET, R.I., Sept. 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS Health
(NYSE: CVS) announced today that, as part of the company's broad
commitment to fighting the national opioid abuse epidemic, it is
enhancing its enterprise-wide initiatives supporting safe drug
disposal, utilization management of pain medications and funding
for treatment and recovery programs.
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"As America's front door to health care with a presence in
nearly 10,000 communities across the country, we see firsthand the
impact of the alarming and rapidly growing epidemic of opioid
addiction and misuse," said Larry J.
Merlo, President and CEO, CVS Health. "Today we are
announcing an expansion of our enterprise initiatives to fight the
opioid abuse epidemic that leverages CVS Pharmacy's national
presence with the capabilities of CVS Caremark, which manages
medications for nearly 90 million plan members."
To support this goal, CVS Caremark will roll out an enhanced
opioid utilization management approach for all commercial, health
plan, employer and Medicaid clients as of February 1, 2018 unless the client chooses to opt
out. This program will include limiting to seven days the supply of
opioids dispensed for certain acute prescriptions for patients who
are new to therapy; limiting the daily dosage of opioids dispensed
based on the strength of the opioid; and requiring the use of
immediate-release formulations of opioids before extended-release
opioids are dispensed.
CVS Pharmacy locations will also strengthen counseling for
patients filling an opioid prescription with a robust safe opioid
use education program highlighting opioid safety and the dangers of
addiction. This clinical program will educate patients about the
Guideline for opioid prescribing published by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which advises using the
lowest effective dose for the shortest duration possible.
Pharmacists will counsel patients about the risk of dependence and
addiction tied to duration of opioid use, the importance of keeping
medications secure in the home and methods of proper disposal of
unused medication.
In the last two decades, opioid prescribing rates have increased
nearly three-fold, from 76 million prescriptions in 1991 to
approximately 207 million prescriptions in 2013. This remarkable
volume of opioid prescribing is unique to the United States, where prescribing in 2015
was nearly four times what it was in Europe.
"Without a doubt, addressing our nation's opioid crisis calls
for a multipronged effort involving many health care stakeholders,"
Merlo added, "from doctors, dentists and pharmaceutical companies
to pharmacies and government officials. With this expansion of our
industry-leading initiatives, we are further strengthening our
commitment to help providers and patients balance the need for
these powerful medications with the risk of abuse and misuse."
"The misuse and abuse of opioids is a public health crisis we
have to work together to solve," said Dr. Gary Roberts, president of the American Dental
Association. "As prescribers of opioid pain medications, dentists
can help keep these drugs from becoming a source of harm for
patients, and the American Dental Association (ADA) is absolutely
committed to working with our fellow health organizations to
promote the appropriate use and disposal of controlled substances.
The ADA will do everything we can to help end this national
emergency."
In a commentary published today on the Health Affairs Blog, CVS
Health Chief Medical Officer Troyen A. Brennan, M.D., M.P.H.,
wrote, "In many ways, the abuse of opiates can be seen as the
leading public health emergency the
United States faces today…In light of the human suffering
and financial costs caused by the current epidemic, a thoughtful,
responsible, evidence-based treatment of pain is a service we must
provide to our patients. Employing principles sanctioned by the CDC
is clearly necessary and prudent."
In addition to limiting opioid dispensing, CVS Health today
announced that it will be expanding its Medication Disposal for
Safer Communities Program to a total of 1,550 kiosks, including 750
additional disposal units in CVS Pharmacy across the country
beginning with locations in Florida, Massachusetts, North
Carolina, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina and the
District of Columbia this
fall.
"Everyone has a role to play in addressing the opioid epidemic,
and CVS Health is showing how the private sector can help," said
Richard Baum, Acting Director of
National Drug Control Policy. "Making sure people can safely
dispose of unwanted medications is a key part of preventing opioid
misuse and abuse, and CVS Health has taken this important step
which will support the health of communities across the
country."
To date, through this program, created with the Partnership for
Drug-Free Kids, CVS Health has previously donated more than 800
medication disposal units to local police departments in 43 states.
More than 100 metric tons of unwanted medication, that could
otherwise have been diverted, misused or abused, have been
collected and safely disposed of through this program in the past
two years.
"CVS Health has long partnered with us to help prevent and
address prescription drug abuse and we understand the depth of the
company's commitment and the breadth of their ability to respond,"
said Fred Muench, PhD, President and
CEO of the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. "We strongly
support their work to limit the quantity of opioids dispensed to
patients, consistent with the Guideline set by the CDC, and their
work to educate patients, teens and parents about the dangers of
opioid misuse."
The CVS Health Foundation has also added a $2 million commitment to its previous investments
in mitigating prescription drug abuse with support for
Federally-qualified community health centers to increase access to
medication-assisted treatment and other recovery services.
Together, the CVS Health Foundation and National Association of
Community Health Centers (NACHC) convened a panel of experts to
develop a protocol of best practices for community health centers
on provider prescribing guidelines, medication-assisted treatment,
behavioral health and collaboration with other community
organizations to treat and prevent prescription drug abuse among
at-risk patients. These guidelines will serve as a resource for
community health centers receiving grants from this partnership to
provide treatment for opioid addiction. This initiative expands the
CVS Health Foundation's ongoing funding of programs to reduce
prescription drug abuse.
"We are proud of our long-standing relationship with the CVS
Health Foundation to help reduce health disparities among medically
underserved populations," said Tom Van Coverden, President and CEO,
National Association of Community Health Centers. "Community health
centers have the unique ability to leverage their care teams,
health information technology systems and quality infrastructure to
support drug abuse control in their communities. Through the
Innovative Approaches for Prescription Drug Abuse Management and
Prevention program, we hope to build capacity for providing
integrated behavioral health services in communities with high
incidence of substance use and abuse with the goal of implementing
innovative, collaborative, and community‐based models that result
in safe prescribing practices, care coordination, strengthened
partnerships and non-judgmental environments for all patients."
CVS Health is also expanding its commitment to opioid abuse
prevention education by bringing its Pharmacists Teach program to a
parent audience. The Pharmacists Teach program has been part of the
company's ongoing commitment to prevent and address prescription
drug abuse in the communities it serves. The program connects CVS
Pharmacists with schools in their communities to provide a unique
perspective to students about the dangers of prescription drug
abuse. To date, the program has focused on teens and has educated
more than 295,000 students about prescription drug abuse.
In addition to the company's ongoing focus on prevention, CVS
Health has also worked to expand access to the opioid-overdose
reversal medication naloxone in 43 states and has advocated for
improving tools like Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs, which
help pharmacies and prescribers prevent abuse.
About the Company
CVS Health is a pharmacy innovation
company helping people on their path to better health. Through its
9,700 retail locations, more than 1,100 walk-in medical clinics, a
leading pharmacy benefits manager with nearly 90 million plan
members, a dedicated senior pharmacy care business serving more
than one million patients per year, expanding specialty pharmacy
services, and a leading stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription
drug plan, the company enables people, businesses and communities
to manage health in more affordable and effective ways. This unique
integrated model increases access to quality care, delivers better
health outcomes and lowers overall health care costs. Find more
information about how CVS Health is shaping the future of health
at https://www.cvshealth.com.
Investor Contact:
Mike
McGuire
(401) 770-4050
Michael.McGuire@CVSHealth.com
Media Contacts:
Erin
Britt
(401) 770-9237
Erin.Britt@CVSHealth.com
Carolyn Castel
(401) 770-5717
Carolyn.Castel@CVSHealth.com
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SOURCE CVS Health