We have treatments for opioid addiction that work. So why is the problem getting worse? Opioid addiction doesn’t get as many headlines as it used to, but the crisis is as bad as ever. It doesn’t have to be.
Decades into the deadliest drug overdose epidemic in American history, people are dying at higher rates than ever, challenging our healthcare system management to adapt and respond effectively. Between 2017 and 2021, the number of overdose deaths involving opioids jumped from 47,600 to 80,411 – many more Americans than are killed each year by guns or cars. The surge has been largely driven by powerful synthetics like fentanyl, an opioid 50 times more potent than heroin.
Provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show a similar number of opioid-involved overdose deaths in 2022, at 79,770. Overdoses in Black, American Indian, and Latinx communities have been rising even faster, widening the mortality gap between white people and people of color. In 2020, Black men 65 and older died of overdoses at seven times the rate of white men in the same age range.
However, the adoption of MAT is hindered by health policy topics that still reflect an outdated approach to addiction. Nearly ninety percent of users in need of assistance are left without access to these treatments, highlighting a gap in physicians’ medical support enabled by current policies.
Reflecting upon these statistical findings, my mind journeyed back to a profound statement during an interview conducted five years ago about the escalating opioid crisis.
When mentioning ‘most people,’ researcher Sandra Wakeman refers predominantly to those who access consistent medication-assisted treatment (MAT) – a therapeutic approach heralded as the unprecedented standard in administering addiction care. This comprehensive model synergizes routine counselling sessions and behavioral therapy with prescription drugs such as Methadone or Buprenorphine- more commonly distributed under the trade name Suboxone. Both substances comprise synthetic opioid compounds proficient in curtailing withdrawal symptoms and cravings; they possess immense potential to reduce overdose incidents by a staggering 76% percent.
Medication-Assisted Treatment’s (MAT) concept emerged as a significant shift away from the 20th century convention, which primarily advocated moralizing abstinence and reliance on rehab and twelve-step programs as an approach to addiction care.
However, this raises critical questions; why does society continue failing at counteracting or more significantly diminishing escalating opioid crises? A major concern is the limited availability of evidence-based treatments, such as Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT), for those grappling with opioid disorders. It is perplexing to see that nearly ninety percent of users in need of assistance are left without access to these proven treatments. This begs the question of why societal systems and institutions have not prioritized and implemented strategies that provide comprehensive and effective support for those struggling with opioid addiction.
Societal conventional wisdom over an entire century have mostly leaned towards associating punitive measures directed by established policies and systems perceiving addiction through a moralistic lens. Although contemporary discussions now mention the public health implications, existing clinical approaches to the issue persistently exhibit an outdated mindset on addiction, reflecting mistaken beliefs about patients deliberately committing unethical acts necessitating severity in responds.
The punitive mentality prevalent in drug rehabilitation circles often leads to a disproportionate focus on detoxification. To this day, many drug rehab facilities continue to underscore the importance of rapid opioid withdrawal over Medication-Assisted Therapy (MAT). According to a 2020 nationwide research into inpatient programs, merely 29% provided long-term MAT alternatives. Furthermore, out of all residential treatment centers for adolescents surveyed last June; only one out of eight offered buprenorphine for sustained treatment.
This viewpoint is echoed amongst virtually every medical professional I interviewed with each shedding light onto how societal norms and established ideologies hamper efficient addiction treatment.
As we move forward, addressing these issues will require a concerted effort to integrate innovative health policy topics and innovations in healthcare that embrace Medication-Assisted treatment and other proven methods, spearheaded by informed and compassionate physicians’ medical practices.
