Legislation removes barriers to using buprenorphine to treat people with opioid use disorder

The Omnibus Spending Bill, which passed in December, marked a step forward in addressing the problem of opioid use disorder, or OUD. It included the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act, which is a bipartisan effort that will help prevent overdoses, increase access to treatment and reduce stigma.

The act removes many barriers in the prescription of medications for medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder, specifically buprenorphine, the most commonly prescribed of the MAT medications. This medication, along with naltrexone and naloxone, is considered by many to be among the principal tools in the treatment of OUD.

However, medications are only part of the solution for treating people with OUD. Other approaches include:

• Psychotherapy
• Contingency management, a therapy approach that aims to help a person decrease drug-related behaviors through positive motivation
• Family and social support systems
• Community resources
• Support programs such as Nar-Anon

“Case management can also be an effective tool in helping to ensure continued engagement, removing barriers to treatment and identifying non-adherence to treatment early so patients can get back on track more quickly,” said William Beecroft, M.D., medical director of behavioral health for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. “One of the main hallmarks of successful treatment is the patient’s continued engagement with the treatment program with no future use of the substance. OUD is a chronic illness, such as diabetes and heart disease, and needs to be addressed as such.”

For more information about the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act — and what barriers have been removed by this legislation — see this document** from the End Substance Use Disorder campaign. We’ll also include a column from Dr. Beecroft with additional details in the March-April issue of Hospital and Physician Update, which publishes in mid-March.

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**Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan doesn’t own or control this website.