Effectiveness of Policies for Addressing the US Opioid Epidemic: A Model-Based Analysis from the Stanford-Lancet Commission on the North American Opioid Crisis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The U.S. opioid crisis has been exacerbated by COVID-19 and the spread of synthetic opioids (e.g., fentanyl).

Methods

We model the effectiveness of reduced prescribing, drug rescheduling, prescription monitoring programs (PMPs), tamper-resistant drug reformulation, excess opioid disposal, naloxone availability, syringe exchange, pharmacotherapy, and psychosocial treatment. We measure life years, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), and opioid-related deaths over five and ten years.

Findings

Under the status quo, our model predicts that approximately 547,000 opioid-related deaths will occur from 2020 to 2024 (range 441,000 - 613,000), rising to 1,220,000 (range 996,000 - 1,383,000) by 2029. Expanding naloxone availability by 30% had the largest effect, avert

SUBMITTER: Rao IJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8592267 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature