the University of Maryland, and the Friends Research Institute, found that the use of medication-assisted therapy (MAT)
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in a series
}Opioid Addiction facts about:
“If you think research is expensive, try disease.” - Mary Lasker 1901-1994
Today:
The Cost:
:: One American dies every 20 minutes from an opioid overdose;
:: Health care costs for opioid addiction are more than
more than 33,000 opioid overdose deaths in 2015 alone.+ ^ :: More than 20.4 million Americans suffer from a substance use
disorder (SUD), including more than 2 million people with an opioid use disorder.* :: Americans are 4.6 times more likely to die from an opioid
overdose than those in the rest of the world. □ :: Compared to the general U.S. population, military veterans are
more than twice as likely to abuse prescription drugs.‡ :: More than 1,000 Americans are treated in emergency
departments every day for overdose and misuse of opioids.^ :: In 2015, the amount of opioids prescribed per person in the
U.S. was three times higher than in 1999.○ SAVING LIVES SAVING MONEY
HOW RESEARCH SAVES LIVES: :: Since 1996, Naloxone -- an emergency treatment for opioid
overdose -- has saved the lives of more than 26,000 people who would have otherwise died from overdose.* :: An estimated 1 out of every 500 new opioid prescriptions will
lead to an overdose within five years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has developed opioid prescribing guidelines to help physicians reduce patients’ risk of developing opioid addiction.+^ :: A study conducted in Baltimore by city and state health officials,
the University of Maryland, and the Friends Research Institute, found that the use of medication-assisted therapy (MAT) to treat addiction to the opioid heroin was associated with a nearly 50% decrease in heroin overdose-related deaths.‡
HOW RESEARCH SAVES MONEY: :: Every dollar invested in addiction treatments saves $12 in
avoided health care and indirect costs.● :: Research shows that SUD treatments can be highly cost
effective: among patients with an opioid-related SUD, average per patient health care costs are over 50% higher for patients who receive no SUD treatment relative to the costs for patients who receive methadone or buprenorphine treatment.□ * CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION □ LYNCH, F. ET AL. ADDICT SCI CLIN PRACT., 2014. 9(1):16. ^ COCHRAN, G. ET AL. MED. CARE. 2017. 55(3):291:298. ● NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE
‡ SCHWARTZ, R. AM J PUB HEALTH, 2013. E1-E6. + DOWELL, D. ET AL. 2016. MMWR. 65(1):1–49.
$26 billion per year. ● :: The total national economic burden of opioid
addiction is more than $78.5 billion per year.● + RUDD, R. ET AL. MMWR, 2016. 65(50-51):1445–1452 ○ GUY, G. ET AL. MMWR, 2017. 66(26):697-704. ● FLORENCE, C. ET AL. MEDICAL CARE, 2016. 54(10):901-906. □ UNITED NATIONS * SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION ‡ NATIONAL COUNCIL ON ALCOHOLISM AND DRUG DEPENDENCE ^ CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
perspective: Steve Sutton, M.D., Board Certified in Addiction Medicine, Medical Director at Bridging the Gaps, Inc. Residential Treatment Center Dr. Steve Sutton was working as a surgeon when he found himself fighting his own battle against substance use disorder (SUD). In 2013, after receiving successful treatment for his opioid addiction, Dr. Sutton became a board certified addiction medicine specialist to help others address their disease. He now provides SUD treatment in Northern Virginia. Dr. Sutton treats SUD just as he would any other chronic, relapsing, non-curable disease: by focusing on changing the behaviors that have negative consequences for the patient and supplementing behavioral treatment with medication when necessary. Many doctors and members of the public remain unfamiliar with SUD and SUD treatment. Dr. Sutton estimates that “medical students receive less than 10 hours of training on substance use disorder and proper prescribing practice.” Several states have begun to require SUD training for physicians, and public awareness of SUD has increased, but for Dr. Sutton the slow pace of change “has come at the cost of a massive amount of heroin overdoses.” To adequately address SUD, Dr. Sutton would like to see more training for medical professionals and an increased commitment to researching and developing medicationassisted treatment (MATs) to address cocaine, benzodiazepine, and other SUDs that lack them. Even though we have a long way to go, Dr. Sutton is hopeful that with increased research, awareness, and education, more individuals suffering from SUD will be able to find effective and successful treatment just as he did.
}
facts about: Opioid Addiction Hope for the Future: :: National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded research is
progressing rapidly on the development of a vaccine to treat opioid addiction. This vaccine would guard against overdose and prevent opioids from reaching the brain, reducing drug self-administration.* :: A Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) allows
pharmacists and physicians to spot early signs of opioid overprescribing and misuse. Supplemental federal funding in 2016 enabled CDC to provide additional support to 14 of the 29 PDMP states. However, there is an urgent need to increase the number of PDMPs so that no state lacks this crucial resource. After Ohio and Florida implemented PDMPs, over 80% of counties saw a reduction in the amount of opioids prescribed per person. ^+
National Survey: Majority Support More Funding to Address Opioid Addiction
19%
23%
8% Do you support or oppose increased funding for research to better understand and combat the opioid addiction?
SOURCE: A RESEARCH!AMERICA SURVEY OF U.S. ADULTS CONDUCTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ZOGBY ANALYTICS IN JANUARY 2017.
14% 36% Strongly support Somewhat support Somewhat oppose Strongly oppose Not sure
The Bottom Line:
Opioid addiction is a medically complex disease that has biological, :: Long-acting opioid blockers like implantable naltrexone are environmental and societal causes and implications. Addiction “rewires” the brain, leading individuals to develop compulsive behaviors to the detriment showing significant promise in reducing relapse rates and ‡ of their health, relationships and livelihoods. While significant progress has extending sobriety in individuals with opioid addiction. been made, more research is desperately needed to fully understand and * KIMISHIMA, A. ET AL. ACS CHEMICAL BIOLOGY, 2016. successfully prevent and treat this pervasive, debilitating and costly health ^ CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION + GYU, G. ET AL. MMWR, 2017. 66(26):697-704 threat. ‡ KRUPITSKY E. ET AL. AM J DRUG ALCOHOL ABUSE, 2016. 42(5):614-620.
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The Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation is a founding partner in this series of fact sheets. www.laskerfoundation.org 43.1.717
