Pharmacy Services Researcher Describes Findings in Opioids (Increasing Naloxone Access and Prescribing for Patients on High-Dose Opioids From a Managed Care Pharmacy Health Plan Perspective): Opioids

2024 MAY 20 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Data detailed on opioids have been presented. According to news reporting from Temple, Texas, by NewsRx journalists, research stated, “Opioid overdoses decrease when communities have access to naloxone. Clinicians play a key role in offering naloxone to high-risk chronic opioid patients.”

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from Pharmacy Services: “Managed care pharmacists within our health plan noted disproportionate processing for claims of opioid utilizers compared to claims of naloxone prescriptions. To increase naloxone access and prescribing to members who classify at a dosage with a higher risk for opioid overdose, defined as over 90 morphine milligram equivalents (MME). Multiple system-wide initiatives were implemented to improve naloxone access. A claims file was pulled monthly to identify members on opioids meeting MME criteria >90 MME per day excluding members with cancer, sickle cell disease, or on hospice. A separate report was then matched to naloxone claims and prescribing percentages calculated. 12 444 utilizing members on opioids were identified from June 2019 prescription claims data. Of these, 131 were on opioids exceeding 90 MME per day, or 1.05% of utilizers, and the percentage of members exceeding 90 MME per day prescribed naloxone was 6.87%. By May 2023, the percentage of opioid utilizers exceeding 90 MME per day decreased to 0.58%. Naloxone prescribing increased to 41.18%.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “A multi-pronged approach to improve access to naloxone and continued educational efforts by our health plan increased naloxone prescribing in members on opioids exceeding 90 MME per day.”

For more information on this research see: Increasing Naloxone Access and Prescribing for Patients on High-Dose Opioids From a Managed Care Pharmacy Health Plan Perspective. Journal of Pharmacy Practice, 2024. The publisher for Journal of Pharmacy Practice is SAGE Publications.

A free version of this journal article is available at https://doi.org/10.1177/08971900241247598.

Our news journalists report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Jodi P. Hansgen, Pharmacy Services, Baylor Scott & White Health Plan, Temple, TX, United States. Additional authors for this research include Megan L. Robertson, Ellen M. Verzino, Lindsay M. Manning.

ORCID is an identifier for authors and includes bibliographic information. The following is ORCID information for the authors of this research: Jodi P. Hansgen (http://orcid.org/0009-0008-9345-4736), Megan L. Robertson (http://orcid.org/0009-0008-9807-5698), Ellen M. Verzino (http://orcid.org/0009-0006-9647-384X), Lindsay M. Manning (http://orcid.org/0009-0001-4817-104X).

(Our reports deliver fact-based news of research and discoveries from around the world.)