Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Tupelo
Local advocates see opioid legislation as good start
By Michaela Gibson Morris
TUPELO - Northeast Mississippi addiction recovery professionals were glad to see the U.S. Senate pass legislation aimed at addressing the opioid epidemic on Monday.
“It’s a good starting point,” said A.J. Wilemon, a recovery coach for Tupelo-based Addiction Recovery Resources.
The Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, 99-1. It includes measures to address the supply of illegal drugs, including synthetic opioids like Fentanyl; improve access to treatment and foster long term solutions, like the development of non-addictive painkillers. It will need to be reconciled with a similar bill that passed the U.S. House of Representatives in June before it can be signed into law.
The final bill included the eTreat Act, which would waive the geographical restrictions that typically prevent Medicare reimbursement on telemedicine services to treat substance abuse. Both Mississippi senators had a hand in the eTreat Act. Sen. Roger Wicker was co-author of the measure; Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith was a cosponsor.
“I think it’s great that both sides are working to pass legislation,” said Dr. Stephen Pannell, medical director of the Oxford Treatment Center in Lafayette County.
With 72,000 overdose deaths in 2017, there needs to be a rapid response.
“The fear is that it’s going to continue to grow exponentially,” Pannell said.
Just as there is a standard of care for responding to heart attacks and strokes, there should be a medical model that can get people struggling with addiction quickly stabilized and into treatment, Pannell said. Currently, there aren’t nearly enough resources to provide the treatment and there’s a lot of inconsistency in what insurers want to cover that goes against best practices.
“A large majority of my day is fighting to get patients benefits they’ve paid for,” Pannell said.
Wilemon sees a need for expanded substance abuse treatment for all kinds of addiction, not just opioids, and better support for those leaving treatment so they can rebuild relationships, rejoin the workforce and become productive.
“We’re having trouble getting beds for treatment,” Wilemon said. “Then we have problems finding a place for them go after treatment.”