News & Media

Recently, CEPOP led an advocacy campaign to support strategic funding to help battle opioid abuse in the Omnibus Appropriations legislation. That effort was supported by 19 organizations. To read the funding letter sent to the Committee on Appropriations, please click here.

Over 50 participants attended a congressional briefing to learn how new therapies, precision medicine, big data, and disposal technologies are helping in the effort to stem this epidemic.  Congressman Ami Bera, MD provided views on the policy efforts which are needed from his perspective as both a physician and lawmaker. (From left to right: Gen.[…]

Join CEPOP on Thursday, December 3 at the Capitol Visitors Center to learn how precision medicine, big data, disposal technology, new therapies,  and other innovative approaches are helping to confront the opioid abuse epidemic. The lunch is from 11:30 to 1 p.m. The full invitation can be found here.

CEPOP co-founder Mary Bono sat down with House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Upton to discuss the current policy landscape surrounding prescription opioid abuse. The meeting came as the E&C Health Subcommittee was reviewing several legislative proposals to address different dimensions of the epidemic.

Last month, CEPOP members met with CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden to discuss the agency’s unfolding FY 2017 initiatives, and to learn more about the CDC’s draft guidelines for prescribing opioids for chronic pain.  CEPOP will continue advocacy for the final FY 2017 appropriations and will develop comments on the proposed guidelines.

October issue, the JAMA published a series of articles on the growing opioid epidemic, demonstrating the range issues facing the medical community and policymakers. The articles included Addressing the Opioid Epidemic, Changes in Substance Abuse Treatment Use, and Nonmedical Prescription Opioid Use.

This month, AIT celebrated 25 years of leadership in toxicology testing and patient prescription drug monitoring. In 2014, AIT introduced GuideMed, a service that assists health care providers as they build monitoring programs that are both effective and ethical.

In a recent study, researchers found a correlation between Florida’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) and pill mill laws and a decrease in opioid prescribing and use, particularly among patients with the highest levels of use.

The House yesterday also passed the National All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting Reauthorization Act of 2015, which would reauthorize funding for states to operate and expand their controlled substance monitoring programs.

The House yesterday passed the Protecting Our Infants Act of 2015, which now moves on to the Senate for consideration. Sponsored by Rep. Katherine Clark (MA-D-5), this bill would mandate an evaluation of the rise of prenatal opioid abuse and neonatal abstinence syndrome and include recommendations for prevention and treatment.

House Energy & Commerce Committee Democrats wrote to U.S. FDA Commissioner Ostroff requesting his agency require opioid manufacturers to revise their product labels to reflect concerns surrounding neonatal abstinence syndrome. The letter was signed by 22 members.

Prior to the August recess, Sens. Cassidy (R-LA) and Murphy (D-CT) introduced the Mental Health Reform Act of 2015. The legislation seeks to make numerous reforms surrounding the mental healthcare system, including the establishment of an Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The National Governor’s Association  held their summer meeting in West Virginia over the weekend. Honorable Mary Bono spoke before the group about the opioid abuse epidemic and invited them to join forces with CEPOP. The weekend-long meeting drew to a close with good news:  HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell announced that her agency would devote an additional $100 million to[…]

New DEA Administrator Chuck Rosenberg announced that the agency would be reviving the national drug take-back initiative. The decision comes as Chief Rosenberg has learned, over the course of two months, the true extent of the opioid abuse epidemic: “I knew there was a problem. I knew it was big. I didn’t know it was[…]

Grünenthal Group, a pharmaceutical company based in Germany, announced a collaboration with Proteus S.A., a Chilean company, and Boston Children’s Hospital on the anesthetic neosaxitoxin. Neosaxitoxin is a novel anesthetic used for local anesthesia and post-operative pain management.  

The American Society of Addiction Medicine released its National Practices Guideline for the Use of Medications in the Treatment of Addiction Involving Opioid Use. The guidelines are meant to assist physicians in treating patients with addiction issues.

Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation announced the results of its survey on prescription opioid use among young people at an event on Capitol Hill that featured several legislators who have led on these issues. The survey addresses both usage and whether young people know where to turn for help. The entire event can be viewed on their website.

The House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight & Investigations has announced it will  hold a hearing on April 23 entitled, “Combatting the Opioid Abuse Epidemic: Professional and Academic Perspectives.” The hearing will be an opportunity for Members to solicit perspectives on treatment options currently available and new evidence-based practices for supporting individuals living with addiction.