CVS announces expansion of efforts to combat opioid abuse

WOONSOCKET – CVS Health Corp. announced an expansion of its efforts to combat national opioid abuse Thursday.

The company said it will expand its CVS Pharmacy drug disposal program to 1,550 kiosks, more than doubling its original 750 units. CVS Health will begin by rolling out the expansion in Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia.

In addition to the 750 CVS Pharmacy kiosks, 800 such units were also previously donated to law enforcement agencies across the country. The units are designed to accept unwanted medications that could be diverted (sold illegally), misused or abused.

“As America’s front door to health care with a presence in nearly 10,000 communities across the country, we see firsthand the impact of the alarming and rapidly growing epidemic of opioid addiction and misuse,” said Larry J. Merlo, president and CEO, CVS Health. “Today we are announcing an expansion of our enterprise initiatives to fight the opioid abuse epidemic that leverages CVS Pharmacy’s national presence with the capabilities of CVS Caremark, which manages medications for nearly 90 million plan members.”

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The CVS Health Foundation also announced that it has expanded its financial commitments to federally-qualified community health centers to increase access to medication-assisted treatment and recovery services by $2 million to mitigate drug abuse. The company convened with the National Association of Community Health Centers to develop a protocol of best practices for community health centers on prescribing guidelines, medication-assisted treatment, behavioral health and collaboration with other community organizations to treat and prevent prescription drug abuse among at-risk patients.

CVS Caremark, CVS’ prescription benefit management subsidiary, announced that it will enhanced its opioid utilization management for all commercial, health plan, employer and Medicaid clients as of Feb. 1, 2018, unless a patient opts out. The enhanced management will include limiting to seven days the supply of opioids dispensed for certain acute prescriptions for patients new to therapy, limiting the dosage of opioids dispensed based on the strength of the opioid and requiring the use of immediate release formulations of opioids before dispensing extended-release medication.

“CVS Health recognizes that to effectively tackle and defeat the opioid epidemic in this country, all stakeholders need to work together in a coordinated effort,” said R.I. Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin. “I commend the company and its leadership team for not only stepping up to the plate in how it operates, but for working with its partners, especially the medical community and law enforcement, to develop and support measures that will make a real difference in this fight. CVS Health is not only a leader in Rhode Island, they are a national leader when it comes to issues that affect individuals and families in all the communities in which they operate.”

The company has also expanded its Pharmacists Teach program to a parent audience in addition to its school outreach on the dangers of prescription drug abuse.

“Without a doubt, addressing our nation’s opioid crisis calls for a multipronged effort involving many health care stakeholders,” Merlo said, “from doctors, dentists and pharmaceutical companies to pharmacies and government officials. With this expansion of our industry-leading initiatives, we are further strengthening our commitment to help providers and patients balance the need for these powerful medications with the risk of abuse and misuse.”

Chris Bergenheim is the PBN web editor.