CVS Health has announced a number of new measures as part of its commitment to fighting the national opioid abuse epidemic.
As of February 1, 2018, CVS Caremark will roll out an enhanced opioid utilization management approach for all commercial, health plan, employer and Medicaid clients, unless the client chooses to opt out.
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The program will limit the supply of opioids dispensed for certain acute prescriptions to seven days for patients who are new to therapy, limit the daily dosage of opioids dispensed based on the strength of the opioid and require the use of immediate-release formulations of opioids before extended-release opioids are dispensed.
In addition, the company says that CVS Pharmacy locations will expand counseling for patients filling an opioid prescription with a safe-use education program that emphasizes opioid safety and the dangers of addiction, as well as educating them on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that advise using the lowest effective dose for the shortest duration possible. Pharmacists will counsel patients about the risk of dependence and addiction tied to duration of opioid use, as well as the importance of keeping medications secure in the home and methods of proper disposal of unused medication.
CVS Health also says that it will be expanding its Medication Disposal for Safer Communities Program to a total of 1,550 kiosks, including 750 additional disposal units in CVS Pharmacies across the country; the program will begin with locations in Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and the District of Columbia this fall.
Through this program, the company has previously donated more than 800 medication disposal units to local police departments in 43 states, thus allowing collection and safe disposal over the last two years of more than 100 metric tons of unwanted medication that could otherwise have been diverted, misused or abused.
The CVS Health Foundation has also added a $2 million commitment to its previous investments in mitigating prescription drug abuse with support for federally qualified community health centers to increase access to medication-assisted treatment and other recovery services.
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