JAMA Network Open: Telehealth Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder During Pregnancy Research found that a majority of pregnant people remained engaged in telehealth-enabled opioid use disorder (OUD) care, with most carrying to term. The researchers conducted a cohort study assessing the efficacy of a low-barrier, multistate, telehealth-based addiction treatment program in the US. They [...]
Drug and Alcohol Dependence: Are Relaxed Telehealth and Take-Home Medication Regulations for Treating Opioid Use Disorder Cost-Effective? A multidisciplinary team of Stanford researchers has found that relaxed guidelines for opioid use disorder during the COVID-19 pandemic were likely not only effective, but cost-effective as well. The authors used a model-based analysis to simulate a [...]
Epic Research: ADHD Medications Prescribed at Similar Rates During Telehealth and In-Person Visits This study analyzed medication prescribing rates for telehealth and office visits, which found that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications were prescribed at similar rates during telehealth and in-person visits. Most initial ADHD prescriptions were for stimulant medications in both telehealth (84 [...]
Kaiser Family Foundation: Rise in Use of Mental Health Apps Raises New Policy Issues During the PHE, many federal and state health care requirements were waived in an attempt to expand access to digital behavioral health services such as mental health apps. This Issue Brief looks at how federal PHE waivers may have expanded [...]
Over 35,000 Americans provided comments on the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) proposed rule, "Telemedicine Prescribing of Controlled Substances When the Practitioner and the Patient Have Not Had a Prior In-Person Medical Evaluation." In comment letters responding to the DEA's proposed rule, hundreds of key stakeholders highlighted the need for a special registration for telemedicine and [...]
Foley & Lardner LLP, an international law firm, released a white paper analysis, which discusses the legal authority and statutory obligation of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to promulgate regulations specifying the circumstances in which a special registration may be issued, and more.Notably, it concludes:“The recently released proposed rule does not satisfy DEA’s obligation as [...]
Telemedicine prescribing of controlled substances when the practitioner and the patient have not had a prior in-person medical evaluation (RIN: 1117-AB40)Drug Enforcement Administration Notice of Proposed RulemakingPublic comments due March 31, 2023DEA Resources: Rule Text Highlights for Medical PractitionersDEA Summary ChartSee companion buprenorphine rule summary hereProposed Rule OverviewThe Ryan Haight Act of 2008 directed the [...]
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) released its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on buprenorphine via telemedicine encounter, a summary, and highlights for medical practitioners. The proposed rule amends the DEA’s regulations, in concert with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), on the circumstances under which individual practitioners are authorized to prescribe schedule [...]
JAMA Network Open: Trends and Characteristics of Buprenorphine-Involved Overdose Deaths Prior to and During the COVID-19 Pandemic This study found that eased rules permitting doctors to prescribe buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder through telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t result in a rise in the share of overdose deaths involving the drug. The report, from [...]