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Medication Assisted Treatment will be one of three main battlefields that Health and Human Services (HHS) will take against opioid abuse. HHS Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced the initiative yesterday, March 26th, 2015, that will confront the national epidemic from supply of drugs to overdoses and treatment. The problem has become so widespread at this point that it can no longer be taken on one front at a time.

The overall plan is to educate prescribers, stop more overdoses as they occur with Naloxone, and expand the reach of Medication Assisted Treatment services to more communities. The multiple-flank attack is necessary because non-medical use of prescription painkillers has trended upward for the past decade. This includes youth as well as adults. Worse yet, overdose deaths due to prescription opioids is almost triple those for heroin overdoses according to this article. So the initiative holds promise in that it takes steps from beginning to end, so to speak, of the opioid addiction process.

Medication Assisted Treatment is more than just “harm reduction”, as it was once considered. Now the aim goes beyond maintaining a state of intoxication to prevent cravings for heroin or painkillers. More and more, treatment centers that provide Methadone and Buprenorphine Maintenance services, like at Tarzana Treatment Centers, are focused more on efforts to help clients achieve a goal of abstinence. Success is measured by how many clients no longer need our services rather than how many stay off of heroin or painkillers during treatment. Vivitrol, a monthly Naltrexone injection that we also provide, is a non-narcotic form of opioid craving reduction that also works for alcohol cravings. It is very effective for those in early recovery who want to start with abstinence and have that guard against relapse.

The reason for pointing out TTC’s services is not for promotion, although we don’t shy away from that, but more to let our readers know that our experience with Medication Assisted Treatment has been very positive. Our goal for clients with substance use disorder is always abstinence, so we hope that fact adds credence to the notion that Methadone/Buprenorphine Maintenance and Vivitrol are viable paths to that aim.

Funding this effort will save health care costs in the long run, as well. Reducing the amount of prescriptions written will take time, and a lot of substance use treatment centers still stand rigid against the use of Medication Assisted Treatment. Together, they will decrease emergency room visits and medical detoxification admissions dramatically, so the sooner, the better. On the other hand, getting Naloxone to first-responders can be accomplished relatively fast. This drug basically stops the effects of opioids on the human body, restoring respiration (breathing) and ending the high. Yes, it throws the victim into immediate withdrawals, but it’s better than death and a trip to the emergency room won’t be necessary. Hopefully, the first-responders will take that moment to point the addict toward a Medication Assisted Treatment Center.