CDC’s opioid prescribing guideline earns APhA support

ATLANTA — The Centers for Disease Control and prevention recently released its 2016 opioid prescribing guidelines, aimed at prescribers who recommend opioids for chronic pain outside of cancer treatment, end-of-life care and palliative care, and recommend collaborations with other healthcare professionals, including pharmacists. 

 

Among the guidelines are the recommendations that primary car physicians first turn to non-opioid therapy as a preferred treatment for chronic pain; that they provide the lowest effective immediate dose when they do use opioids; and that they work with patients to establish pain treatment goals, tailoring the treatment to the patient and discontinuing opioids when benefits don’t outweigh the risks. 

 

The guideline has earned praise from the American Pharmacists Association. 

 

“The CDC’s decision to release the guidelines is consistent with other public and private efforts that aim to curb prescription drug abuse while attempting to balance patient access to medically necessary treatment,” APhA associate director of health policy said. “Given the sheer number of Americans living with pain, policy changes and guidelines that influence treatment decisions will have far-reaching consequences.”