Lost chances to treat overdose survivors are documented in new Medicare study
People on Medicare who survived a drug overdose were much more likely to later receive opioid painkillers than any medication to treat addiction — and some went on to die of an overdose
A new study documents lost opportunities to treat drug overdose survivors covered by the Medicare program — and illustrates the difficulty of managing chronic pain.
Overdose survivors “should be at the front of the line for the full range of medications and counseling and support,” said Dr. Brian Hurley, president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, who was not involved in the study, published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine.
Instead, those on Medicare who survived a drug overdose in 2020 were much more likely to later receive opioid painkillers than any medication to treat addiction — and some went on to die of an overdose.
U.S. government researchers found 53% of overdose survivors received opioid painkillers while 4% received treatments such as buprenorphine. Only 6% filled prescriptions for the overdose antidote naloxone. Within a year of their overdose, 17% experienced a second nonfatal overdose and 1% died of an overdose.
