The latest news, tips and updates
from The Partnership at Drugfree.org.
Stolen or fabricated prescription pads are contributing to the surge in prescription drug abuse, experts say. There is a growing call for computer systems that directly link doctors to pharmacies, to avoid this problem.
A Medicaid provider in Kentucky has announced it will stop paying for the opioid addiction medication buprenorphine. A doctor who prescribes the medication says the company’s decision could lead to serious complications, relapse and even overdose deaths.
A Massachusetts law passed in 2006 that expanded insurance coverage did not lead to an increase in the number of state residents who received inpatient treatment for drug and alcohol abuse at state-contracted facilities, according to a new study.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, the state’s largest health insurer, is instituting a policy to reduce prescription drug abuse, by limiting the amount of pain medicine most patients can get without prior approval from the company.
Some emergency departments do not test patients’ blood or urine for alcohol because of issues with insurance payments, Kaiser Health News reports. In more than half of states, insurers are allowed to deny payment for medical services related to alcohol or drug use.
Offering low-dose CT scans to longtime smokers to screen them for lung cancer would reduce the death toll of the disease by an estimated 15,000 lives a year in the United States, a new study concludes.
As the cost of health care continues to skyrocket, HR professionals and their employers are constantly searching for new ways to keep costs under control and as manageable as possible. An employer- sponsored wellness program is one way to do this, explains Anna Spriggs of Legacy.
Some insurance companies deny coverage for opioid abuse treatment, according to an Oklahoma addiction specialist.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced it will tell Medicare prescription drug plans to withhold payment when they detect signs of suspicious activity related to narcotics and painkillers. The move is aimed at reducing Medicare fraud, Reuters reports.
The Mental Health Parity Act, which requires employers offering mental health and substance abuse services to offer those services at the same level as other health-related services, has largely been a success, a new government report finds.
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