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Obtaining telehealth services for opioid use condition through the COVID-19 pandemic was related with lessened odds for fatal overdose amid Medicare beneficiaries, according to a study posted in JAMA Psychiatry.
Scientists from the Facilities for Illness Management and Avoidance, the Facilities for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the Countrywide Institutes of Health studied two cohorts of fee-for-services beneficiaries setting up an OUD-similar episode of treatment: 1 pre-pandemic group of far more than 105,000 and a 2nd pandemic group of far more than 70,000.
They observed beneficiaries who started out care in the course of the pandemic and gained OUD-relevant telehealth providers had a 33% minimized hazard of a lethal overdose. Although mortality charges were being larger in the pandemic group, the proportion of fatalities because of to overdoses have been comparable concerning the cohorts.
Scientists also found clients who been given drugs for OUD from therapy plans experienced a 59% diminished hazard of fatal overdose, even though those who acquired buprenorphine in office environment options experienced a 38% reduced threat. However, acquiring extended-launch naltrexone in business office settings wasn’t joined to lower odds of overdose.
“This cohort examine discovered that, among Medicare beneficiaries initiating OUD-related care during the COVID-19 pandemic, receipt of OUD-related telehealth solutions was linked with lowered possibility for lethal drug overdose, as was receipt of MOUD from opioid procedure packages and receipt of buprenorphine in office-primarily based options,” the study’s authors wrote. “Procedures to increase provision of MOUD, raise retention in care and address co-taking place bodily and behavioral overall health circumstances are required.”
WHY IT Issues
Overdose fatalities over-all spiked throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching more than 107,000 in 2021. Far more than 80,000 fatalities concerned opioids.
The most recent analyze reflects before research on OUD-linked telehealth expert services. Nonetheless, the authors notice that handful of sufferers are accessing treatment. Only a person in 5 Medicare beneficiaries in the pandemic cohort acquired telehealth solutions, and a person in eight been given medications for OUD.
“The success of this analyze include to the developing study documenting the benefits of increasing the use of telehealth solutions for men and women with opioid use ailment, as nicely as the have to have to enhance retention and entry to treatment cure for opioid use problem,” guide author Christopher M. Jones, director of the Nationwide Centre for Injury Avoidance and Handle at the CDC, stated in a assertion. “The conclusions from this collaborative review also highlight the value of working throughout agencies to determine prosperous techniques to address and get ahead of the consistently evolving overdose disaster.”
Margie Zuk and Melissa “Penny” Chase will provide a lot more element at the HIMSS23 session “Preparing for the Subsequent Cyber Attack.” It is scheduled for Wednesday, April 19 at 10:15 a.m. – 10:35 a.m. CT at the North Developing, Degree 3, in Corridor B, Booth 8539, Federal Well being Pavilion.
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