Oral Prescription Opioid Drug Abuse in the US – Background, Health Behavior Determinants, and Interventions

Running Head: ORAL PRESCRIPTION OPIOID DRUG ABUSE IN THE US                                                               

Oral Prescription Opioid Drug Abuse in the US

– Background, Health Behavior Determinants, and Interventions

Gerry Som

Dec. 2017

Table of Contents

1) Introduction - 3

2) Research questions - 3

3) Background of the issues and of the targeted behavior - 4

4) Background of determinants - 16

5) Previously implemented interventions - 18

6) Conceptual model - 31

7) Proposed interventions - 33

8) Implementation of conceptual model interventions - 37

9) References - 38

10) Appendix                                                                                                                       

- Appendix A: Common opioid drugs and their medical uses - 41

- Appendix B: Types of opioid drugs - 42

- Appendix C: How prescription opioids drugs are misused - 43

- Appendix D: Routes of abuse for oral prescription opioid drugs - 44

- Appendix E: OTC drugs are 8 out of the 14 most frequently abused - 45

- Appendix F: Increase in pharmacy prescriptions for Hydrocodone and Oxycodone - 46

- Appendix G: SEM (Socio Ecological Model) representation by CDC - 47

- Appendix H: Most doctors in the US work for hospitals, not in private practice - 48

- Appendix I : Ohio Department of Health naloxone advisory for opioid overdose - 49

- Appendix J : Total US drug deaths (1999 to 2016) - 50

- Appendix K: Drugs involved in US overdose deaths (2000 to 2016) - 51

- Appendix L: Deaths involving prescription opioid pain relievers (2002 to 2015) - 52

- Appendix M: State of Ohio, Pharmacy campaign, Responsible dispensing of opioids - 53

- Appendix N: Long-term medical effects of opioid dependence - 54

- Appendix O: Prescription opioid effects on the brain - 55

- Appendix P: Mean healthcare cost breakdown per person - 56

- Appendix Q: Some brand name and generic prescription opioids available in the US - 57

- Appendix R: United States, overdose deaths involving opioids by county 2015 - 58

- Appendix S: Lobbying expenses for favorable laws by pharmaceutical companies - 59

- Appendix T: Positive relation between opioid drug prescriptions and overdose cases - 60

- Appendix U: Reversing the opioid crisis in a community - 61

- Appendix V: Regional Opioid Model of Care - 62

- Appendix W: Systems Approach - 63

 - Appendix X: US life expectancy declined for 2nd straight year due to drug overdoses - 64     

 - Appendix Y: Personal conclusions, thoughts and opinions - 65

Oral Prescription Opioid Drug Abuse in the US

– Background, Health Behavior Determinants, and Interventions

This is an attempt to seek answers to a few research questions as listed in the next section. The information in each section is brief, keeping in mind the limited scope of this paper. The targeted behavior is oral prescription opioid drug abuse. The word abuse includes dependence, addiction, and overdose. This is a descriptive research, qualitative research and secondary research via literature review of government websites, credible news sites, journals, and peer reviewed articles. The focus is mainly on oral prescription opioid drug abuse, not non-oral routes of drug administration like injections, smoking, inhalation, snorting and patches, though oral opioid drugs have been modified by users for administration via other routes. All age groups and genders are included. The geographic focus is the US. The word physicians (or doctors) in this paper is meant to include dentists, physician assistants and nurse practitioners – any medical professional who can prescribe opioid drugs legally in the US. Statistics mentioned may sometimes include all forms of drugs or opioids, used in various routes. Why was this topic chosen for study? (a) This is an important and major public health issue in 2017, and a growing problem (b) I am a primary care physician and wanted to explore the roles physicians play, both positive and negative, in the oral prescription opioid drug epidemic and (c) I am interested in doing further research on this topic in the future.

                                                             Research Questions       

1.     What are the causes and / or the forces behind the current opioid epidemic in the US?

2.     Who are the key players involved? What are their motivations and agendas?

3.     How severe is the problem? What is the economic and social impact?

4.     What are the effects on the individual’s physical, mental and social health?

5.     What are the effects on public health?

6.     Are doctors responsible for the prescription opioid epidemic? To what extent?

7.     Should opioid prescriptions be banned (since they may lead to addiction) until non-addictive drugs are created / available?

8.     What are the various health behavior causes to this issue (a.k.a. determinants)?

9.     What health behavior steps can be taken to solve to the issue (a.k.a. interventions)?

10. What single targeted behavior should be chosen to act on?

11. What is the ideal or desired outcome or goal?

12. Which two multilevel interventions can best address the identified determinants?

13. What is the best conceptual framework under SEM (Socio Ecological Model) to implement the selected interventions?

14. What is the best method of implementation of the conceptual model?

Background of Issues and of Targeted Behavior

Oral Prescription Opioid Drugs

Prescription opioid drugs are powerful pain-reducing medications that include prescription oxycodone, hydrocodone and morphine, among others. They have benefits as well as risks. These medications can help manage pain, but when misused, they can cause serious harm, including addiction, overdose and death (FDA-USDHHS, 2017). Appendix A lists some common opioid drugs and their medical uses. Appendix B lists some types of opioid drugs. Appendix C lists how some prescription opioids are misused. The information is from NIDA - National Institute on Drug Abuse. Prescription opioids are medications that are chemically similar to endorphins (opioids that our body makes naturally to relieve pain) and also similar to the illegal drug heroin. Prescription opioids usually come in pill form and are given to treat severe pain from dental surgery, sports injuries, or cancer. Opioids are commonly prescribed to treat chronic pain, but it is unclear if they are effective for long term pain. When prescribed for a short time, they are relatively safe and can reduce pain. However, dependence (withdrawal symptoms when not taking the drug) and addiction (continuation of use despite negative consequences) are potential risks. Risks increase when medications are misused. Prescription medications are some of the most commonly misused drugs, after tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana. (NIDA, 2017). Prescription opioids are available as immediate-release (IR) or Extended Release / Long-Acting (ER/LA) formulations. The risk increases with ER/LA formulations. Prescription opioids taken in combination with other misused or abused  prescription drugs such as benzodiazepines (sedatives like Xanax) and antidepressants are commonly linked to overdose deaths (ASPE, 2017).

List of Prescription Opioid Drugs Available in the US

Appendix Q has a few brand names and generic prescription opioid drugs available in the US. The following are more brand names: Abstral, Actiq, Avinza, Butrans, Demerol, Isonipecaine, Pethidine, Dilaudid, Dolophine, Duragesic, Fentora, Hysingla, Methadose, Morphabond, Nucynta ER, Onsolis, Oramorph, Oxaydo, Roxanol-T, Sublimaze, Xtampza ER, and Zohydro ER. Combination Opioid Prescriptions are as follows: Anexsia, Co-Gesic, Embeda, Exalgo, Hycet, Hycodan, Hydromet, Ibudone, Kadian, Liquicet, Lorcet, Lorcet Plus, Lortab, Maxidone. MS Contin, Norco, Opana ER, OxyContin, Oxycet, Palladone, Percocet,

Percodan, Reprexain, Rezira, Roxicet, Targiniq ER, TussiCaps, Tussionex, Tuzistra XR, Tylenol #3 and #4, Vicodin, Vicodin ES, Vicodin HP, Vicoprofen, Vituz, Xartemis XR, Xodol, Zolvit, Zutripro and Zydone. Some generic opioid prescriptions are: Fentanyl, Methadone hydrochloride, Morphine sulfate, and Oxymorphone hydrochloride. Street names for opioids: Apache, China girl, China white, Dance fever, Dillies, Friend, Goodfella, Hillbilly Heroin, Jackpot, Juice, Murder 8, Oxy 80, Oxycat, Percs, Perks, Tango and Cash, and TNT (RehabCenter, 2017).

Opioid Drug Abuser Profiles, Habits and Access to Prescription Drugs

The individuals at greatest risk for prescription opioid overdose are: (a) White and American Indian/Alaska Native people (b) men (although overdose among women is on the rise) (c) people living in rural areas (clusters in the Southeast, especially in the Appalachian region) (d) adults aged 45-54 years (e) people who obtain multiple controlled substance prescriptions (especially the combination of opioid analgesics and benzodiazepines) from multiple providers and (f) people who take high daily dosages of opioid pain relievers (ASPE, 2017). Among persons aged 12 or older in 2012-2013 who used prescription pain relievers non-medically in the past year, 53% received them from a friend or relative for free and 15% bought or took them from a friend or relative. Occasional nonmedical users (those who use the drugs non-medically less than 30 days a year) are most likely to obtain their drugs from a friend or relative for free. The highest-use, highest-risk nonmedical users (those who reported nonmedical use 200 or more days a year) were more likely to obtain their drugs directly from a doctor’s prescription than from any other source (ASPE, 2017). Diversion through family and friends is the most common source of prescription opioid analgesics for abuse. These relatives / friends had mostly obtained their prescriptions from a single doctor. Drivers (factors) of prescription opioid abuse have been shown to include increased availability of therapeutic opioids, and comorbid mental health disorders (Gasior, 13). America’s opioid epidemic began at the pharmacy. Most deaths began with a prescription. More than half of all people who succumbed to an overdose between 2001 to 2007 were chronic pain sufferers who filled an opioid prescription. Only 4% were ever diagnosed as having an abuse problem. One out of every six emergency room visits in the U.S. was opioid-related. More than 33,000 Americans died from opioid overdoses in 2015. People with disorders such as depression, anxiety or alcohol abuse were at higher risk of opioid-related death. There are dangers of prescribing opioids and benzodiazepines simultaneously. (Rausch, 2017).

Effects of Opioid Dependence on Individual Health

           Appendix N shows the long-term medical effects of opioid dependence on the health of an individual. Opioid dependence is a chronic medical condition in which patients are vulnerable to relapse. Patients risk long-term medical effects of opioid dependence, including death. People with opioid dependence are at high risk for opioid-related adverse events and comorbid conditions. The respiratory, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, immune, endocrine, and central nervous systems are all affected. Chronic opioid use can cause adverse events such as constipation, sleep-disordered breathing, fractures, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal dysregulation, and overdose. People with opioid dependence require more visits / stays in hospitals / clinics than their peers. 11.2 times more likely to have had at least 1 mental health outpatient visit. 12.2 times more likely to have had at least 1 hospital inpatient stay. Half a million emergency room visits were due to opioid dependence in 2011. People with opioid dependence were significantly at higher risk for comorbid conditions associated with drug abuse than their peers. 78 times greater risk for non-opioid poisoning. 36 times greater risk for hepatitis A, B, or C. 8.5 times greater risk for developing/having a psychiatric illness. 21 times greater risk for pancreatitis (Zubsolv, 2017). Appendix O shows prescription opioid effects on the brain.

Social and Economic Impact of Opioid Dependence

The effects of opioid dependence go beyond the individual into society, as families and communities share the burden. Opioid dependence can have huge psychosocial costs. Some of them are as follows: families destroyed, low educational achievement, unemployment, homelessness, destabilized communities, increased crime, increased transmission of disease (like HIV and hepatitis) and increased healthcare costs. The pharmacoeconomic cost of opioid dependence is enormous. $56 billion per year in total US costs in lost workplace productivity, healthcare, and criminal justice. Healthcare costs account for $25 billion. Average healthcare cost per patient is 8 times higher, compared to nondependent patients. Inpatient hospital costs are 24 times higher. Half a million ER visits were due to dependence on prescription opioids in 2011, a 153% increase from 2004 (Zubsolv, 2017).

Extent of the Opioid Epidemic and the Crisis in the US

American life expectancy at birth declined for the second consecutive year in 2016, from 78.7 years to 78.6 years, because of a 21% rise in the death rate from drug overdoses, CDC reported. Opioid overdose deaths are listed under unintentional injuries in Appendix X. Things don’t look better for 2017 either. In other developed countries, life expectancy is going up. This is proof of the toll the opioid crisis is taking on younger and middle-aged Americans. 42,000 Americans died of opioid overdoses alone in 2016, a 28% increase over 2015. Deaths from fentanyl and other synthetic opioids doubled. Men (26 deaths per 100,000) were twice as likely to die of a drug overdose as women (13 deaths per 100,000) in 2016. West Virginia, New Hampshire and Ohio lead other states at 52, 39 and 39 deaths per 100,000 respectively. Patrick Kennedy mentioned “This is no longer an opioid crisis. This is a moral crisis. We know how to answer this problem, but we can’t get around our own prejudices (Christopher Ingraham, 2017).

On 26 October 2017, the president of the US declared the opioid epidemic a national public health emergency under the Public Health Services Act. From 2000 to 2015, more than 500,000 people died of drug overdoses, and opioids account for the majority. CDC found that around 64,000 (64,070 to be exact) people died from drug overdoses in 2016. (Merica, 2017). Overdose deaths in the US spiked 21% in 2016 compared to 2015 because of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid analgesic similar to morphine but 50 to 100 times more powerful. Appendix J shows the total US drug deaths (1999 to 2016), Appendix K shows the drugs involved in US overdose deaths (2000 to 2016) and Appendix L shows deaths involving prescription opioid pain relievers (2002 to 2015). As per NIDA, more than 90 Americans die after overdosing on opioids every day. ER visits and deaths related to opioid overdose have more than quadrupled over the last 15 years. Opioid misuse / addiction, including prescription pain relievers, heroin and fentanyl is a national crisis. Nearly half of all opioid overdose deaths involve a prescription opioid. Prescription opioids are also known as happy pills, percs, vikes, oxy, OC, Hillbilly Heroin, and many other names (NIDA, 2017).

Approximately 33 million people (0.7% of the world’s adult population) currently abuse prescription or non-prescription opioids. In 2014, approximately 4.3 million individuals aged 12 years or older (1.6% of the population) reported non-medical use of prescription opioid analgesics in the US, making it the second most commonly abused drug class after marijuana. Societal costs of abuse of prescription opioid analgesics in the USA were estimated to be $55.7 billion in 2007 (Gasior, 13). Mortality and morbidity due to prescription opioid abuse have increased over the last decade. Rates of ER visits associated with pharmaceutical misuse or abuse increased 114% between 2004 and 2011. In 2011, more than 1.4 million ER visits annually were due to the misuse or abuse of pharmaceuticals, with 420,000 involving prescription opioids and 425,000 involving benzodiazepines. In 2009, the admission rate for substance abuse treatment for prescription opioid abuse was six times that in 1999. Other health consequences from prescription opioid abuse include (a) NAS (neonatal abstinence syndrome) (b) increased risk of transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C (associated with injection) and (c) fractures in older adults (due to falls) (ASPE, 2017). Appendix R shows overdose deaths involving opioids by county 2015. As per Appendix T, there is a positive correlation between opioid drug prescription and overdose cases. The regions most affected are Appalachia, California-Oregon border, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and Arizona (David Fallis, 2016).

Doctors Turned White Coat Drug Dealers: Diversion Schemes and Fake Tests

Diversion schemes and fake tests are examples of two techniques employed by some doctors to make money from opioid addicted patients or drug dealers (who then sell the pills in the black market for a profit). Doctors can make money from their consultation fees and from bogus tests. When doctors write unnecessary prescriptions to make money, it is called a “diversion scheme” as they charge cash for “doctor visits” that involve almost no actual physical examination. Oxycodone tablets can sell for $20 to $30 each in New York city and even higher in Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine. A single prescription can fetch $2,400 or more. Many of the ‘patient’ involved have no actual medical need for oxycodone. They are typically addicts, drug dealers who resell the pills, or members of ‘crews,’ which are individuals who are recruited and paid by large-scale oxycodone distributors to pose as ‘patients’ in order to receive medically unnecessary prescriptions. Dr. Ernesto Lopez, arrested in New York for fraud charged $250 cash fee for an initial visit (Saul, 2017). Dr. Martin Tesher was busted in June 2017 for writing 14,000 unnecessary painkiller prescriptions, even to addicts. The prescriptions generated 2.2 million oxycodone pills (worth $20 million). More than 2 million Americans were said to be hooked on opioids in 2015, while 95 million used prescription painkillers in the past year. In January 2016, Dr. Kevin Lowe was sentenced to 12 years in prison for running a huge oxycodone ring out of a chain of Bronx clinics he operated as “pill mills”. Lowe issued 35,000 oxycodone prescriptions, resulting in 5.5 million oxycodone tablets (street value of $165 million). In April 2017, Dr. Lazar Feygin was accused of running a 13-person ring responsible for pushing 6.3 million prescription painkillers out of three Brooklyn clinics, worth $100 million on the street (Keshner, 2017). In April 2014, official drug agents raided Jeffrey Campbell’s medical clinic. Records showed that Campbell endangered patients by prescribing opiates without medical need and collected millions of dollars from Medicare for urine tests at his office lab. He did not act when test results revealed that patients were abusing prescription and illegal drugs. Four patients died from drug-related causes under his watch. Others flunked two dozen urine tests, but the clinic kept prescribing them pills. One patient with a history of overdoses failed 46 urine tests and was never confronted. In a dozen recent criminal cases, doctors supplied opiates to patients with repeated abnormal urine test results. Alabama pain specialist Shelinder Aggarwal billed Medicare and private insurers more than $9 million for urine tests solely to profit (Schulte, 2017). Cardiologist, Dr. Devendra I. Patel, was arrested for unlawful distribution of prescription opioids, Medicare fraud and Medicaid fraud. He is charged with 36 counts of distribution of controlled substances, and three-counts of health care fraud. It is alleged that, from May 2014 to September 2017, Patel routinely prescribed fentanyl, hydrocodone, and oxycodone for his patients without a legitimate medical purpose and fraudulently billed Medicare and Medicaid for medical tests that he did not perform. Patel performed EKGs on his patients, so he could then order nuclear stress tests which he did not administer. He used a poorly calibrated machine and presented his patients with fraudulent X-rays, in order to deceive his patients into thinking they had coronary issues that needed to be treated by him. DEA representatives said of him: “Healthcare professionals who abuse the public’s trust and prescribe or dispense drugs purely for profit are drug dealers, and they’re going to be held accountable. To combat opioid epidemic, we will never hesitate to investigate health professionals more concerned with profits than patients. Inappropriately diagnosing patients and then prescribing medications is only compounded by the greed of sticking taxpayers with the bill” (USDOJ, 2017). These are just some examples of how some doctors are motivated by money, neglect patient safety, as well as defraud Medicare, Medicaid and insurance companies. There are many more such stories on news sites. 

Drug Companies Bribing Doctors to Increase Opioid Drug Sales

John Kapoor, 74-year-old billionaire and founder of Insys Therapeutics Inc. employed aggressive ways to sell opioid pain killers - he began bribing doctors to prescribe them to push prescriptions of a highly addictive fentanyl-based drug intended only for cancer patients. Selling a highly addictive opioid-cancer pain drug to patients who did not have cancer was unethical. A Rhode Island doctor admitted accepting kickbacks from Insys in exchange for writing prescriptions. In early 2017, two doctors were sentenced for accepting bribes from companies including Insys to sell fentanyl-based medications. In 2012, Kapoor and others at Insys went to extremes to boost sales of oral / sublingual spray opioid fentanyl painkiller called Subsys. Doling out speaker fees, marketing payments, as well as food and entertainment perks, they began bribing doctors to prescribe the drug, and then tricked insurers into paying for it. He and his team misled insurers about patients’ diagnoses, the types of pain they suffered, and what other pain drugs patients had tried before being proscribed Subsys (Feeley, 2017). This shows how doctors are approached, influenced and lured by drug companies by aggressive marketing methods, and how some doctors act against their conscience and professional code of ethics to harm patients. 

“Pill Mill” Drug Companies and Pharmacies Breaking Distribution Laws Repeatedly

A Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) team based in Denver was ready to act on the biggest opioid distribution case in U.S. history. The team had been examining the operations of the nation’s largest drug company and the fifth-largest public corporation in America, McKesson Corp. By 2014, investigators said they could show that the company had failed to report suspicious orders involving millions of highly addictive painkillers sent to drugstores from Sacramento, CA, to Lakeland, FL. Some of those went to corrupt pharmacies that supplied drug rings. The DEA team wanted to revoke registrations to distribute controlled substances at some of McKesson’s 30 drug warehouses, fine the company more than $1 billion, and bring a criminal case against the drug distribution company. However, they were unable to convince the U.S. attorney in Denver. This illustrates the conflict between drug investigators and government attorneys who handle cases at the DEA and the Justice Department. None of McKesson’s warehouses lost DEA registrations. The company was a second-time offender. The company paid no attention to the unusually large and frequent orders placed by pharmacies, some of them knowingly supplying drug rings. In 2008, McKesson paid a $13.25 million fine for failing to report hundreds of suspicious hydrocodone orders from Internet pharmacies, even after being warned by the DEA for shipping excessive amounts of Vicodin. The online pharmacies took orders from customers who had obtained bogus prescriptions. From 2008-2011, the increase for oxycodone 30 mg orders supplied by McKesson to Platte Valley Pharmacy was 1,469%. Drug distributors, including McKesson, sent 780 million pills over six years into West Virginia, 433 doses for every man, woman and child in the state (Higham, 2017). This shows that money or profit is the motive for manufacturers of opioid drugs over and above concerns of public safety. Appendix S shows lobbying expenses for favorable laws by pharmaceutical companies for 2014-2016. Some companies became “pill mills” churning out drugs that ended up in wrong hands.

Drug Companies Falsely Marketed Prescription Opioid Drugs as “Low Risk”

In the mid-1990s, Purdue Pharma patented OxyContin, and began aggressively marketing the opioid to doctors and patients that OxyContin had the capacity to relieve chronic pain with little risk of abuse or addiction. Purdue conveyed that same message through media advertisements. The DEA claimed that this aggressive, excessive and inappropriate marketing had exacerbated the abuse of OxyContin. In 2007, Purdue pleaded guilty to federal charges of misbranding drugs, and were forced to pay a $635 million fine. By then, OxyContin had already earned the company billions of dollars at the cost of 29,600 American lives. The advertising had already popularized a notion that opioids were a low-risk method to reduce chronic pain. This encouraged other pharmaceutical firms to bring their own addictive analgesics to market. In May 2017, Ohio attorney general Mike DeWine announced that his state is suing five drug makers for fueling the opioid crisis by consciously misleading Ohio residents about the addictive potential of their prescription painkillers. “The evidence is going to show they knew what they were saying was not true and they did it to increase sales,” DeWine said, alleging that the firms deliberately marketed their products to general practitioners who may not have a particular specialty in that area. The lawsuit targets Purdue Pharma, Johnson & Johnson, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Allergan PLC, and Endo International PLC. Mississippi, Chicago, and California’s Orange and Santa Clara counties have also sued opioid makers on allegations of malevolent marketing (Levitz, 2017). This shows how drug companies use marketing to reduce the perception of harm of opioids among people. 

Oxygen to the fire - Medicare money, Medicaid money and Insurance money

There are no free lunches. However, as long as someone is paying the bills for the pills, the show will go on. Fraudulent prescriptions by doctors and drug abuse by patients or other users will continue. Some doctors not only benefit from gifts from drug companies for prescribing opioids, they also exploit Medicare, Medicaid and insurance companies by making them pay for unnecessary opioid prescriptions and drug tests like urine tests. Some doctors have billed Medicare millions each for drug testing. Then, there are “doctor shoppers” - patients who visit multiple doctors to get opioid prescriptions, which they may then be able to sell in the black market for higher prices or abuse them themselves. It is important for Medicare, Medicaid and insurance companies to find ways to detect these frauds. One of the ways is to ensure that medications are given for a limited time, and not for 6 months at a time. Prescription Drug Monitoring Program database should be strictly used and followed by doctors to keep track of doctor shoppers.

About 22,000 Medicare Part D beneficiaries seem to be doctor shopping for opioids - obtaining large amounts prescribed by four or more doctors and filled at four or more pharmacies. In Washington, D.C., a Medicare beneficiary filled prescriptions for 2,330 pills of oxycodone, hydromorphone and morphine in a single month in 2016 - written by just one of the 42 health providers who prescribed the person such drugs (Ornstein, 2017). Dr. Sardar Ashrafkhan of Ypsilanti, Michigan was sentenced recently for conspiracy to distribute opioid pills, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and money laundering. He participated in illegally distributing over 200,000 dosage units of oxycodone, over 1 million dosage units of another opioid, hydrocodone, and over 3 million dosage units of controlled substances of all kinds. He was responsible for over $8 million in health care fraud (Verisys, 2017). There may be many others like him who escaped because they operated on smaller scales or went undetected.

Medicaid programs are at the center of the opioid epidemic too. Nearly 12% of adults covered by Medicaid have a substance use disorder, including opioid use disorder. In 2010, Arizona Medicaid paid for more than half of all opioid-related emergency department admissions, and in 2012, 81% of the $1.5 billion in nationwide hospital costs related to NAS (neonatal abstinence syndrome) fell to Medicaid. In 2012, it was found that Medicaid paid more than $500 million for over 34 million claims for opioid drugs (Amy Bernstein, 2017). In April 2017, the clinics of Dr. Lazar Feygin of Brooklyn wrote fraudulent oxycodone prescriptions and had patients take unnecessary medical tests, which cheated Medicare and Medicaid out of $24 million in reimbursements (Keshner, 2017). A billion-dollar opioid fraud crackdown took place in mid-2017, and 400 people were charged. Doctors were prescribing unnecessary opioids. Medical facilities preyed on addicts to shell out cash for unnecessary treatments that only worsened their condition. Some doctors wrote out more prescriptions for controlled substances in one month than entire hospitals were writing. To opioid addicts, the prescriptions escalate their dependence on drugs. They are like a death sentence. The scams resulted in more than $1 billion in false billing uncovered in the largest health care fraud takedown operation in American history. Most of that came out of the government's pocket by illegally billing Medicare and Medicaid. (Rafferty, 2017).

Background of Determinants

Socio Ecological Model

For the purpose of discussing (a) determinants (b) interventions and (c) conceptual model in this paper, the SEM (Socio Ecological Model) will be used. A diagrammatic representation of SEM is in Appendix G. SEM has been chosen since it enables analysis of different stakeholders, finding the root causes (determinants) of problems as well as making implementations (interventions) on multiple levels, for more effective results. It is not enough to act on one level alone. Working on multiple (or all) levels is ideal, but it depends on the availability of resources. The scope of this paper is to discuss only two levels. This paper focuses on (1) the individual level and (2) organizational level, since these are the two most important components of the opioid abuse problem, involving the two most important stakeholders, namely patient (individual level) and healthcare professionals like doctor, dentist, pharmacist and so on (organizational level). Of course, the interpersonal level is important because family and friends influence health behavior; Of course, the community level is important because of access to resources in the form of addiction counseling and local access to care; Of course, the policy level is extremely important because proper regulations will greatly help curb the opioid epidemic.

Individual Level

Some of the important factors are as follows: (1) Self-efficacy or self-regulation for opioid drug free health and behavior (2) Knowledge, awareness and education regarding the dangers of opioid abuse (3) Knowledge of the resources and help available to prevent dependence as well as seeking help in cases of addiction (4) Preventing patients on opioids from sharing medications with others (5) Knowledge of what to do immediately, in case of an overdose, to save themselves from death. One such example is the knowledge and awareness of how to use Naloxone (Appendix I). The typical oral prescription opioid drug abuser is a white or native American male around 50 years of age living in certain rural areas, and obtaining multiple prescriptions for controlled substances. This demographic must be kept in mind when designing interventions.

Organizational Level

Important determinants are as follows: (1) Most doctors work in organizations like hospitals and not in private practices (Appendix H), and private practices can be considered as small organizations as well. (2) Doctors (including dentists) have the authority to prescribe opioid medications (3) Money, gifts, temptations and pressure from pharmaceutical companies may influence doctors to write more oral prescription opioids (4) Doctors may try to milk and defraud Medicare, Medicaid and insurance companies by prescribing opioids excessively, illegally (without following prescription laws) and unnecessarily as well as doing unnecessary tests related to drug addictions to make money (5) Ensuring that physicians follow the guidelines of CDC for socially responsible prescriptions of opioid drugs is the duty of organizations (6) Pharmacies should not involve in illegal sales of drugs to drug dealers (7) Pharmacists working in pharmacies should not be careless with regards to dispensing opioids, especially for those with fake prescriptions. The number of hydromorphone and oxycodone prescriptions has been on the rise over the past decade (Appendix F). Awareness is required for pharmacists to differentiate true prescriptions from fraudulent ones (Appendix M). OTC (over the counter) drugs contribute to 8 out of 14 causes of deaths from overdose (Appendix E). Hence, the pharmacist has a very important role to play as well, next to doctors in organizations.  

Previously Implemented Interventions

Individual level

As per Institute for Healthcare Development report, A Systems Approach to the Opioid Crisis (2016), a case study of Columbia Pacific Coordinated Organization, opioid abusers can be classified into four categories, with a different approach to each category (1) Naïve patient (2) High dose chronic use (3) Opioid dependent, seeking within healthcare and (4) Opioid dependent, seeking outside of healthcare. There are 4 approaches (Appendix U) to helping the patients (1) Limit supply of opioids (2) Raise awareness of risk of opioid addiction (3) Identify and manage dependent patients and (4) Treat opioid addicted individuals. There is also a suggestion for (a) Improved clinician experience and (b) Improved patient experience (Safina Koreishi, 2016). This is a useful method to approach individuals already abusing opioid drugs.

           As per Kenneth Griffin and Gilbert Botvin (2011), individual factors encompass cognitive, social, personality, pharmacological, biological, and developmental factors. Cognitive risk factors for substance use include a deficiency of knowledge regarding the risks of use and abuse, along with the misperception that substance use is “normal” and that the majority of people engage in use. As described in the self-medication hypothesis, affect regulation plays a central role in the etiology of substance use. Psychological characteristics associated with substance use include poor self-esteem, low assertiveness and poor behavioral self-control. Pharmacologic risk factors become increasingly important as an individual’s substance use increases in frequency and quantity. The majority of adults with substance abuse problems begin to use substances during their adolescent years. Youth-focused prevention initiatives include educational and skills training programs for young people in school settings. There is accumulating evidence showing that the initiation of substance use early in life contributes to higher levels of use and abuse later in life. Early onset is also associated with a host of later negative health, social, and behavioral outcomes including physical and mental health problems, violent and aggressive behavior, and adjustment problems in the workplace and family” (Kenneth W. Griffin, 2010). This suggests that interventions towards opioid abuse should be started early on, preferably in adolescence. Additionally, there should be skill building and education, building self-esteem, self-control, and cognition. 

           As per a WHO bulletin (2017), some US states link prescription drug monitoring programs with patient electronic medical health records, so that doctors can more easily look up a patient’s prescription history. Others alert physicians when they see that one of their patients has been requesting prescriptions from different providers, known as “doctor shopping”. Not all prescription drug monitoring programs let physicians see what other prescriptions patients are receiving in real-time. Where such programs exist, they are not used enough. If prescribing opioids, it recommended that physicians ensure that patients are fully aware of the risks, start them at the lowest possible effective dose and avoid doses above a certain level. CDC is working with medical schools and nursing colleges to ensure that students are taught safe opioid prescription and pain management. The National Health Service structure in the United Kingdom, where general practitioners tend to have close relationships with patients, might help restrict doctor-shopping as per Stannard, a consultant in Complex Pain and the Pain Transformation Program. Stronger health and social systems are needed in the US to address the prescription opioid epidemic, according to Dr Anna Lembke. The solution lies in reforming the health-care system to incentivize doctors to talk to patients, educate patients and spend more time with them, not just to prescribe pills and perform surgeries. Many doctors do not know how to diagnose or treat addiction and are unable to help patients who become dependent on opioids. A new approach to managing pain is needed. We need to change our narratives around pain, encourage notions of resilience and understand the limits of modern medicine (WHO, 2017).

           As per an APHA article (2015), some issues to be addressed are doctor shopping, tamper-resistant prescription form requirements, regulation of pain management clinics, prescription drug monitoring, prescription drug overdose emergency response immunity, and access to naloxone. Education must be required for health care prescribers. Patient education efforts could focus on safe storage, use, and disposal of prescription medications. Pain medication prescription prescribers must be educated on identification and treatment of pain, alternative modalities, substance abuse screening, and mental illness assessments and treatment for vulnerable populations. The Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) Center of Excellence describes the prescription drug abuse epidemic as a factor of increased prescribing of prescription drugs. There should be consideration for (1) abuse-deterrent opioid formulations, (2) increased medication storage security at home, (3) drug take-back opportunities, (4) improved clinician education, and (5) improved effectiveness of prescription drug monitoring programs. These five solutions strive to reduce access to prescription drugs that may be used for reasons other than their originally intended purpose. For example, improved clinician education aims to teach clinicians to prescribe only the number of doses they expect patients to need in acute pain settings and the importance of avoiding excess prescribing. Similarly, PDMP electronic databases provide supplemental information on controlled substance prescriptions and allow for detection of and intervention among individuals attempting to fraudulently obtain such prescriptions. Primary drug abuse prevention efforts that aim to educate patients form the foundation for reducing prescription drug demand. SAMHSA also identifies young adults, veterans, and military service members, as well as older adults, as being disproportionately affected by prescription drug misuse and abuse. In fact, many young people believe prescription drugs to be safer than illegal drugs. In 2014, youths 12 to 17 years of age and young adults 18 to 25 years of age were more likely to have misused prescription drugs in the past year than adults 26 years or older. Prescription drug misuse and abuse are increasing among people in their 50s. This population is at higher risk for medication misuse, largely as a result of increased rates of pain, sleep disorders / insomnia, and anxiety. Elderly individuals are more sensitive to medications because of their slower metabolism. Elderly population may be more likely to take multiple medications for the management of several comorbidities (polypharmacy). Polypharmacy is correlated with adverse health outcomes among elderly individuals. These adverse outcomes are likely due to the increased risk of drug interactions, complexity of the treatment, and management of multiple comorbidities. Improved health outcomes in this population depend on successful care coordination and reductions in cases of polypharmacy. Implementation and mandatory use of PDMP initiatives, and adoption of doctor shopping laws are important. Best practice guidelines, available through SAMHSA, include individually designed programs with detoxification and medically supervised withdrawal and maintenance medications. Also recommended are psychosocial counseling and treatment for any co-occurring disorders, vocational and rehabilitation services, and case management services. Practitioners should examine or evaluate the physical and mental status of a patient before prescribing or dispensing controlled substances. Doctor shopping must be addressed to prevent patients from obtaining controlled substances from multiple providers. PDMPs are useful in allowing access to information across state lines, and prescribers should be required to check this information before the initial prescription is given and at least every 3 months thereafter. Healthcare facilities should not become “Pill mills” - pain management clinics where large numbers of prescriptions are provided. Education for prescribers on appropriate diagnosis and treatment of chronic pain. One study of physicians revealed a knowledge gap related to abuse-deterrent formulations. Providers who prescribe extended-release/long-acting opioid analgesics to treat chronic pain need to consider other drugs that can interact and cause respiratory depression. Use of naloxone by first responders as well as family and friends of individuals addicted to opioids or other narcotics. Family and friends of those at risk of opioid overdose must be educated on the signs of overdose emergency and must be told to call 911 and administer naloxone. They and the naloxone prescriber need to be protected by immunity from prosecution. Increased preparation of substance abuse treatment specialists and increased availability of treatment facilities. SAMHSA workforce initiatives should be encouraged, including partnerships with community-based providers and organizations, efforts to increase the diversity of the behavioral health workforce, and initiatives to expand the numbers of on-site and distance education programs. Prescribers need to practice compassionate weaning if access to prescription drugs is restricted. WHO also recommends reducing inappropriate opioid prescribing, making naloxone available to those who might witness an opioid overdose, and offering more psychosocial support to maintain treatment options. WHO’s suggested treatment options include methadone, buprenorphine, and detoxification. Initial treatment would involve non-opioid medications, to be followed by weak opioids and, subsequently, stronger opioids. The Scottish government has funded a national take-home naloxone program since 2011 to educate families, friends, and caregivers on causes of overdose and administration of naloxone. All individuals released from prison who were on an opioid drug are given naloxone as they leave. This policy has led to a 20% to 30% reduction in opiate-related deaths among the prison release population. The International Narcotics Control Board has reported actions to overcome prescription drug abuse that include preventing forging of prescriptions and decreasing thefts from pharmacies, hospitals, and doctors’ offices. The board also discourages doctor shopping and illegal Internet pharmacy operations. Failure to adequately medicate a patient can place a physician at risk for malpractice. In addition to being charged with negligence, physicians have been sued as a result of complaints regarding both overtreatment and undertreatment of pain. Objections to distributing naloxone to nonmedical personnel also persist despite a lack of scientific evidence to support such objections. In fact, naloxone is safe, effective, and easy to administer via nasal spray or intramuscular injection. Naloxone programs are effective. Naloxone distribution has been an important step in harm reduction to help reach the goal of stopping dependence on and misuse of opiate substances. Syringe exchange programs and opiate substitution therapy are other examples of harm reduction strategies. We should prioritize and implement evidence-based community and provider training programs on mental health, nonpharmacological pain treatment alternatives, substance abuse, and overdose prevention. Among those with prescriptive authority, gaps in education can be assessed and continuing education provided at the time of licensing renewal. Education on non-sharing of prescription medications as well as safe storage, use, and disposal of medications. Messaging must come from multiple public health partners and resources, including public radio and television, billboards, and social media. Some states are using pledges to not share pills. Pain prescription providers to become more knowledgeable on identifying and treating pain with alternative modalities and to coordinate pain management with complementary and integrative care providers. Providers to be educated on and require the use of PDMPs before prescribing pain medications and to increase integration of patients’ information into their electronic health records. Prescribers need to be educated on referral and treatment options if concerns are identified on the PDMP assessment (APHA, 2015). 

Guidance to Dentists to Combat Prescription Opioid Drug Abuse

Dentists cannot assume that their prescriptions of opioids do not affect the opioid abuse problem in the United States. Dentists prescribe 12% of IR (immediate release) opioids. 23% of prescribed doses are used non-medically. Dentists (along with other prescribers) can play a role in minimizing opioid abuse. They should take steps to identify problems and minimize prescription opioid abuse through (a) greater prescriber education (b) greater patient education (c) use of peer-reviewed recommendations for analgesia (d) the tailoring of the appropriate and legitimate prescribing of opioids to adequately treat pain (e) incorporate practical safeguards when prescribing opioids (f) using tools such as prescription monitoring programs (g) educate patients about how to secure unused opioids properly (h) careful patient assessment - screen patients for substance use disorders (i) referral for substance abuse treatment - develop a referral network for the treatment of substance use disorders (Denisco RC, 2017).

Organizational level Interventions

As per Institute for Healthcare Development report (2016), a systems approach can be taken (Appendix W) where different stakeholders within organizations and between organizations can coordinate with each other for better results. For Healthcare providers, the focus can be on provider training, provider pledge, clinical support for tapering and difficult conversations, and updated opioid prescribing guidelines. For organizations, there is a suggestion for technical assistance, regarding clinical work flows, team based care, integrated BH, risk stratification, opioid dashboards and data collection / analysis. As per the Regional Opioid Model of Care (Appendix V), there are useful learnings for organizations like (1) For healthcare providers: prescribing guidelines, ceiling dose and tiered goal. opioid dashboard, clinical up-skilling, changing the paradigm of chronic pain, and so on. (2) Non-pharmaceutical treatments: Behavior based pain clinics, acupuncture coverage, yoga resources, behavioral health (3) Addictions treatment: Medication Assistance Treatment, Detox center, Naloxone (4) Behavioral Health: Integrated behaviorist, increasing access to specialty mental health, and crisis respite and (5) Pharmacy: Taper plan education, drug take backs, naloxone, data / opioid risk score (Safina Koreishi, 2016).   

As per a report by National Safety Council (2017), regarding opioids in the workplace in organizations and the proactive role that employers can take, organizations have an important role promoting health and safety of employees and managing risks in the workplace. Employers who have strong workplace policies, education, health benefit programs and well-trained managers create safe and healthy environments in which both employees and business thrive. Drug distribution through the pharmaceutical supply chain was the equivalent of 96 mg of morphine per person in 1997 and approximately 700 mg per person in 2007, an increase of more than 600%. Per capita, the United States has one of the highest rates of opioid use in the world. A recent study showed that more than half of chronic abusers – those who took pills for at least 200 days during the past year – received those pills from prescriptions written for them (27.3%) or friends and family (26%). This underscores the need for prescribing guidelines and safe, locked storage for these prescriptions in homes. In addition, 23.2% of high risk users bought prescription drugs from friends and relatives and 15.2% purchased them from dealers. Opioid prescription medications are both a health and a safety issue in the workplace. These medications are powerful, addictive drugs that have the potential to cause impairment, increase the risk of workplace incidents, errors and injury even when taken as prescribed. They increase workers compensation costs, increase the length of worker disability and increase work time lost. Drug-Free-Workplace Programs, including the scope of drug testing, the handling of positive results and policies about prescription drug use in the workplace need to be visited. The painkiller market is enormous and exceeded $9 billion in 2012. Research shows that for types of workplace-related injuries, including soft tissue injuries and musculoskeletal problems, opioids are not any more effective than non-opioid alternatives such as Tylenol, Advil or generic ibuprofen. Although opioids are widely prescribed for back injuries and chronic back pain, they should not be the first line of treatment. In fact, long term use of opioids actually may increase an individual’s sensitivity to pain – a phenomenon called as hyperalgesia. NSAIDs offer a more affordable and safer alternative to opioids. Effective Drug-Free workplace programs should consist of 5 components: (1) a clear written policy (2) Employee education (3) Supervisor training (4) Employee assistance program (5) Drug testing. Additionally, employee home safety education includes four key messages: (a) Safe storage (b) Safe disposal (c) Don’t mix (d) Don’t share. Treatment options include: (1) Detoxification from opioid addiction (2) Detoxification followed by intensive counseling (3) Medication replacement therapies. In a study involving the Southern Pacific Railroad, following the implementation of drug testing, incidents resulting in injuries dropped from 2234 incidents in the year before drug testing to just 322 after drug testing. This represents a 71.2% decrease in incidents. With regards to drug testing, they can be very valuable for preventing drug related incidents and reducing risk. A drug testing program curbs drug abuse because it instills a fear of getting caught, the possibility of consequences and severity of those consequences. The structure of a drug testing program largely determines its effectiveness. A typical drug test covers five drugs – opiates / heroin, cocaine, marijuana, PCP, and amphetamines. This may miss oxycodone and other drugs. Oxycodone remains the most detected prescription opiate in the workforce. Since 2006, drug testing for oxycodone has increased from 3% to 14%. Positive tests for oxycodone are 96% higher than they were in 2005. Employers committed to safe and healthy workplaces have a responsibility to address the opioid epidemic. These employers can do so with strong employee policies, alliances with health benefits and workers’ compensation plan providers, education, expanded drug-free workplace testing and access to treatment programs (NSC, 2017).

Policy Level Interventions

           Ohio Governor’s Cabinet Opiate Action Team in Ohio

           “Strategies and policies to address the opioid epidemic: A case study of Ohio. In 2011, the Governor's Cabinet Opiate Action Team was created to implement a multifaceted strategy, in part (1) to promote the responsible use of opioids, (2) to reduce the supply of opioids, and (3) to support overdose prevention and expand access to naloxone. Innovations to assist these goals include the development of Ohio guidelines on the responsible use of opioids, mandatory use of Ohio's prescription drug monitoring program, closing pill mills, promotion of drug take-back programs and increased access to naloxone and public health campaigns. Results: Since the development of the Governor's Cabinet Opiate Action Team, there were 81 million fewer doses of opioids dispensed to Ohio patients in 2015 compared with 782 million doses dispensed in 2011. The proportion of unintentional drug overdose deaths involving prescription opioids reduced from 45% in 2011 to 22% in 2015. Conclusion: Strong political support was crucial in Ohio to facilitate the rapid implementation opioid overdose prevention programs and the promotion of public awareness campaigns. However, the misuse and abuse of prescription opioids are complex problems requiring a comprehensive and multifaceted approach. Pharmacists are identified as a crucial component of the state strategy to addressing opioid abuse by promoting responsible prescribing and adopting prevention practices” (Penm J, 2016).

US Dept. of HHS Initiatives to Combat Opioid Abuse

“U.S. Department of Health and Human Services initiative targets three priority areas to combat opioid abuse: (1) Opioid prescribing practices to reduce opioid use disorders and overdose (2) Expanded use and distribution of naloxone (3) Expansion of Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) to reduce opioid use disorders and overdose” (ASPE, 2017)

In 2015, HHS Secretary announced a targeted initiative to address the epidemic, which includes training programs to educate health care providers on best practices for opioid treatment. A number of states have done away with paper scripts (which have a higher risk for fraud). Some states have laws that require physicians to transmit all prescription for patients online and directly to pharmacies. Federal health officials are also taking steps to make the opioid overdose antidote naloxone more widely available, along with buprenorphine, a drug used to help patients reduce or quit heroin use and prescription painkiller abuse. The HHS also hopes to ramp up programs that provide psychological counseling (Firger, 2016)

CDC Prescription Guidelines

More than half of all opioids used in the U.S. are prescribed by primary care physicians in outpatient settings, and federal health officials believe more guidance is needed in this area of medicine. In response to the growing epidemic of opioid addiction in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on 15 March 2016 issued new recommendations for health care providers who write scripts for these medications. The CDC’s Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain - United States 2016 offers a framework for primary care physicians treating patients for chronic pain. This is defined by health officials as pain that lasts more than three months or doesn’t dissipate after the amount of time the injury or illness typically resolves in people. The guidelines published this week suggest that physicians prescribe non-opioid painkillers whenever possible, and when patients do need opioids, to prescribe the lowest possible dose. Abusers of the drugs may take many pills at once or crush the medication into a fine powder and then snort it or use it intravenously. Pharmaceutical companies have reacted to pressure from public health officials by producing abuse-deterrent formulas of the medication that cannot be crushed. However, addicts have still figured out ways to turn these drugs into powder. (Firger, 2016)

           Useful Policy Level Tips from Former CDC Director, Tom Frieden

In October 2017, Former CDC director Tom Frieden, MD, and Andrew Kolodny shared 10 actions the federal government should take to address America's opioid overdose crisis. They describe the nation's ongoing opioid crisis as the worst drug addiction epidemic in the country's history. More than 90 million people were issued an opioid prescription in 2015. Here are the 10 steps: (1) Improve surveillance of opioid addiction with real-time assessment of data, patterns and trends (2) Improve quality and timeliness of response to opioid-related overdoses and fatalities by delivering better data to law enforcement and increasing funding for coroners and medical examiners (3) Promote cautious opioid prescribing for acute pain by pushing the Food and Drug Administration to change opioid labels to reflect the CDC acute pain prescribing recommendations, which suggest a three-day supply is ample for acute pain, but exceptions of seven-day prescriptions will sometimes be warranted (4) Greatly restrict or completely eliminate opioid prescriptions for chronic pain (5) Expand insurance coverage and access for nonopioid and nonpharmacological pain medications (6) Coordinate efforts between legal and public health officials to stem the international influx of heroin and deadly synthetic opioids like fentanyl into the U.S. (7) Incentivize states to identify possible opioid addiction in patients early and provide them access to treatment for substance use (8) Expand access to medication-assisted opioid addiction treatments (9) Promote harm reduction measures like access to naloxone and clean needles (10) Consider banning ultra-high-dose opioids from the marketplace. They commented that the opioid addiction epidemic has worsened over the course of a generation and will not end overnight. Rapid implementation of these steps could enable tracking and reduction of both new opioid addiction and fatal overdoses (Tom Frieden, 2017).

Initiatives by NIDA (National Institute of Drug Abuse)

NIDA has been active with some initiatives as follows: (1) Medication development, to develop medications with less abuse potential. (a) Pain medications that do not act through opioid receptors (b) Suboxone (bupernorphine/naloxone combination) – a medication developed with the support of NIDA for opioid addiction (c) Depot or long acting formulations of medications, including naltrexone and bupernorphine. (2) Education and outreach. (a) NIDAMED initiative: advancing addiction awareness, prevention, and treatment in primary care practices (b) Centers of Excellence for Physician Information: to educate and enlighten physicians-in-training from diverse specialties (c) PEERx: a new initiative for reaching out to teens, created to provide educators, mentors, student leaders, and teens with science-based information about the harmful effects of prescription drug abuse on the brain and body (Nora D. Volkow, 2010).

Conceptual Model

(Gerry Som - my own)

Description

An accumulation strategy conceptual model has been adopted. The determinants are in boxes, mediators are in diamonds and outcomes are in ovals. The two determinants considered here are (a) Self-efficacy for drug free health and behavior, at the individual level and (b) Focus on patient safety and adherence to CDC prescription guidelines, at the organizational level. The two mediators are (a) Patient motivation at the individual level and (b) Physician motivation at the organizational level. The desired outcome is opioid abuse. The individual level refers to patients or people using oral prescription opioid drugs. The organizational level refers to hospitals, clinics and healthcare facilities that have physicians or dentists prescribing oral opioid drugs.   

Rationale

What or where are the root causes of opioid addiction? Excessive demand (patients crave opioids due to dependence or addiction) and excessive supply (some doctors overprescribe opioids to make money). The individual level (patients) and the organizational level (doctors, dentists, pharmacists and so on) are two levels which have maximum impact. Opioid addicts are the primary individuals that need help. On the other hand, doctors are the ones licensed to medically treat patients. Other possible options in the SEM like the interpersonal level, community level and the policy level are important too. However, social networks cannot be modified overnight, community interventions cannot be implemented overnight and it is not easy to change policy. However, the root causes namely patient behavior and physician behavior can be targeted quickly, individually and effectively. This is described in detail under the heading of proposed interventions that follows.

Proposed New Interventions

At the individual level, patients and vulnerable population can be given attention, time, energy and resources, while at the organizational level, physicians, dentists, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, EMTs, nurses and so on can be given motivated as below.

Individual Level Interventions

With regards to individuals who are already abusing opioid drugs or to those who are susceptible, the following measures can be taken: (1) Patient motivation to use non-opioid drugs for pain, especially chronic pain as well as physiotherapy (2) Patient education about the harms of opioids – undoing the brainwashing done by the advertisements of drug companies which told people that opioids are harmless and low risk (3) Regular outreach to vulnerable population, like those who have existing mental illnesses and have higher risks for opioid addiction (3) De-addiction treatment for those already with dependence and addictions (4) Health and Wellness counseling and drives to people in schools, colleges, universities, communities and work places (5) Knowledge about how to deal with overdoses, using naloxone and seek help (6) Educating patients about MAT (Medication Assisted treatment) by use of drugs like Methadone (7) Telling patients that they are not invincible or special – they are as vulnerable to opioids as anyone else, and not to take opioids lightly (8) Telling people not to be ashamed or afraid to ask for help for opioid dependence (9) Motivating people to develop close bonds with their family and friends who are living healthy lifestyles, and to stay away from addicts, and not to give in to peer pressure with regards to drugs (10) Targeting friends and families of people who are known addicts and people who had recent overdose episodes, for education to prevent them into falling into the trap of opioids (11) Some students may use opioids or other drugs to stimulate the brain during studying of long hours and to keep awake during exams or tests – this should be discouraged (12) Counsel individuals to avoid all types of drugs, not just opioids, so that they do not switch to opioids when they have a chance (13) Special focus on older individuals to advise them of non-opioid alternatives, since they have multiple medications, and have a greater likelihood of being prescribed long term medications (14) Interventions towards drug / opioid abuse should be started as early in age as possible (as soon as addictive habits develop, whether it is tobacco or alcohol or other addictions), preferably in adolescence. Additionally, there should be skill building and education, building self-esteem, self-control, and cognition (16) Managing elderly patients with polypharmacy (multiple medications) with special care since there may be drug interactions (17) Discouraging individuals from doctor shopping and from dealing with black market prescription opioid drugs (both buying and selling) (18) Generating awareness that street drugs may be contaminated with synthetic opioids and may be much more powerful, and easily cause overdose (19) Improving patient experience and developing close rapport with individuals (especially by primary care physician) so that the patient is more compliant due to better trust (20) Training patients about medication storage security (21) Informing patients about abuse-deterrent opioids (22) Informing patient about drug take-back opportunities (23) Special focus and care for young adults, veterans, and military service members, as well as older adults, and the typical white male around 50 years old in the Appalachian, who are more susceptible for drug abuse – these should be a significant target population for support and counseling

Organizational Level Interventions

In organizations like hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies, the following can be implemented: (1) Physician motivation to follow professional ethics and not cave in to greed (2) Physician training about how to deal with opioid abuse cases – both diagnosis and treatment, especially PCPs (Primary Care Physicians) or General Practitioners who do not have as much training as pain management specialists, yet they account for 50% of all opioid prescriptions written in the US (3) Enforcing CDC prescription guidelines and ensuring compliance (4) Reducing influence and reach of pharmaceutical companies over doctors working in organization (5) Greater focus on primary care physicians since they prescribe 50% of the opioids in the US (6) Training dentists to avoid too many short acting opioid medications (7) Pharmacist training and regulations to identify genuine prescriptions from fake ones, and not to be afraid to say not to filling suspicious prescriptions (8) Encourage doctors to adopt non-opioid and non-pharmaceutical management of pain instead (like physical therapy and exercises), especially in chronic pain (9) Prioritizing the balancing compassion for patients with social responsibility – not to be too lenient with opioid prescriptions, even if the patients beg for it or plead or bargain with the doctor for opioids (10) Implementing mechanisms to prevent doctor shoppers from filling multiple prescriptions with multiple doctors (11) Discouraging diversion schemes tactics of doctors (fake examinations just to write opioid prescriptions) (12) Strict code of conduct and regulations in organizations with tight policies in hospitals to prevent doctors from indulging in fake prescriptions or writing excessive medications (13) Strict rules for doctors with regards to dealing with medical sales representatives of drug companies manufacturing opioid drugs (14) Having a well-staffed and well-equipped deaddiction clinic with facilities for MAT (Medication Assisted Treatment) (15) Ensuring that there are sufficient naloxone kits available (16) Training staff in healthcare facilities to identify the signs of opioid overdose and administer naloxone to those who need it urgently (17) Free health camps or awareness drives by doctors and other staff from organizations to make communities aware of the harms of opioid drugs. This can also include public education via radio, television, newspaper articles, online blogs, social media posts and so on (18) Encouraging doctors for continuous surveillance and verbal screening of all patients for all drugs during each visit, with an empathetic approach, so that they do not miss patients who abuse drugs (19) Build rapport with patients and convince them not to be afraid of legal problems or backlash if they disclose their addiction or dependence problems (20) High index of suspicion by medical practitioners to be alert for opioid abusers so that they can be helped (21) Research at the organizational level to develop non-addictive pain medications as alternatives to opioids. Large organizations like the Cleveland Clinic have the potential to work on such research initiatives (22) Asking the physicians to reduce the number and duration of opioid prescription tablets to the minimum possible, since there is a direct relation between opioid drug prescriptions and overdose cases (Appendix T) (23) Physicians should write the lowest possible dose of opioids drugs, and that too, only when indicated to minimize the risk of addiction (24) Doctors should practice evidence based medicine to be scientific and write opioids only when scientifically and medically indicated.  

Interventions at the Other Levels of SEM

Additional measures that are possible at the other levels of the SEM are as follows: (1) Preventing Medicare fraud w.r.t. opioid prescriptions and opioid drug testing – this will greatly decrease the number of prescriptions (2) Preventing Medicaid fraud w.r.t. opioid prescriptions and opioid drug testing (3) Preventing insurance companies’ fraud by being more alert (4) More power to DEA (Drug Enforcement Authority) to fight unlawful pharmacies, drug distributor companies and drug manufacturing companies (5) More laws to protect consumers, not drug companies (6) Linking controlled prescriptions for opioid drugs directly to pharmacies in all 50 states of the US, to prevent fake prescriptions (7) Laws to increase scrutiny of doctors to prevent unnecessary and excessive opioid prescriptions (8) Fighting pill mills (9) Aggressive law and order drives to deal with drug dealers and peddlers selling opioid drugs in the black market. 

Implementation of Conceptual Model Interventions

Individual level:

Patient motivation, education and outreach can be done as follows: (a) Social media: Use of viral photos, videos, posts and groups to spread the message. An example of such message using an image is in Appendix I about Naloxone (b) Email campaign: Targeting people with messages about regular scientific updates, resources, and events (c) Radio: Public service messages about opioid awareness and risks (d) Television: Interviews and infotainment (information with entertainment combined) (e) Banner ads: On buses, local billboards, and online banner ads (f) Individual contact: Direct face to face interaction in schools, colleges, universities, religious places, town halls, fairs, work places, community centers and so on

Organizational level:

Physician motivation, training and communication can be done as follows: (a) Direct outreach: Emails, postal mails, brochures, newsletters, and so on (b) Advertisements: In professional magazines and websites (c) Training sessions: Including curriculum about responsible opioid prescribing in CME (Continuing Medical Education) events and short regular mandatory training sessions with certifications every year (d) Information sessions: Workplace coffee sessions or pizza events with speakers from within the organization offering regular reminders and updates from time to time.

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Appendix A

Common opioid drugs and their medical uses

(NIDA, 2017)

Appendix B

Types of opioid drugs: Natural, semi-synthetic and synthetic

(NIDA, 2017)

Appendix C

How oral prescription opioid drugs are misused

(NIDA, 2017)

Appendix D

Routes of abuse for oral prescription opioid drugs

(Gasior, 13)

Appendix E

Prescription drugs (OTC drugs) are 8 out of the 14 most frequently abused

(Nora D. Volkow, 2010)

Appendix F

Increasing trend in pharmacy prescriptions for opioid drugs Hydrocodone and Oxycodone

(Nora D. Volkow, 2010)

Appendix G

Socio Ecological Model representation by CDC

(CDC, 2017)

Appendix H

Most doctors in the US work for hospitals (organizations), not in private practice

(Accenture, 2017)

Appendix I

Ohio Department of Health naloxone advisory for opioid overdose

(Ohio DOH, 2017)

Appendix J

Total US drug deaths (1999 to 2016)

(NIH-NIDA, 2017)

Appendix K

Drugs involved in US overdose deaths (2000 to 2016)

(NIH-NIDA, 2017)

Appendix L

Deaths involving prescription opioid pain relievers (2002 to 2015)

(NIH-NIDA, 2017)

Appendix M

State of Ohio, Pharmacy campaign, Responsible dispensing of opioids

(State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy, 2017)

Appendix N

Long-term medical effects of opioid dependence

(Zubsolv, 2017)

Appendix O

Prescription opioid effects on the brain

(House, 2017)

Appendix P

Mean healthcare cost breakdown per person

(Zubsolv, 2017)

Appendix Q

Some brand name and generic prescription opioids available in the US

(RehabCenter, 2017)

Appendix R

United States, overdose deaths involving opioids by county 2015

(Economist, 2017)

Appendix S

Lobbying expenses for favorable laws by pharmaceutical companies (2014-2016)

(Bernstein, 2017)

Appendix T

Positive relation between opioid drug prescriptions and overdose cases

(David Fallis, 2016)

Appendix U

Reversing the opioid crisis in a community

(Safina Koreishi, 2016)

Appendix V

Regional Opioid Model of Care

(Safina Koreishi, 2016)

Appendix W

Systems Approach

(Safina Koreishi, 2016)

Appendix X

US life expectancy declined in 2016 for 2nd straight year due to drug overdose deaths

(Christopher Ingraham, 2017)

Appendix Y

Personal conclusions, thoughts and opinions

I am of a strong opinion that economics plays a huge role in almost all events that take place in this world. Applying (health) economics principles will not only help us understand the motives and actions of individuals, but also to design interventions for favorable outcomes. I have worked as a primary care physician for more than a decade. I have treated tens of thousands of patients, met hundreds of doctors of multiple specialties, worked in multiple healthcare areas, worked in different continents with different healthcare systems and studied the behaviors of people. People in the healthcare system are dedicated, but overworked and often feel underpaid. Complaining about low pay is common. Money plays an important role in keeping them happy and adhering to their jobs. Doctors are expected to maintain high social status and flashy lifestyle. They may have a lot of financial obligations including credit card bills, mortgages and student loans. Monetary temptations and pressures abound in healthcare. The comments below do not generalize all healthcare professionals, but only refer to some. Not all professionals below indulge in illegal activities or fraud, but they certainly spoil the name of the profession for the rest of them.

Doctors

When doctors receive gifts from drug companies via sales representatives, this puts pressure on doctors to meet quotas. It begins innocently, and on a small scale, but slowly doctors get hooked. Sometimes borderline patient cases with questionable need for a test, intervention or medication become recommended cases for treatment because of the bias or manipulation of the doctors, with a subconscious or conscious reward seeking behavior. Slowly it becomes a norm, and a new reality to push products for rewards. As long as doctors do not get caught, everything is kosher. Doctors get smart at covering their tracks and justifying their prescriptions with time. Once doctors get addicted to the money and gifts, the behavior continues without guilt by writing more and more prescriptions, by become immune to patient safety, and by putting the blame on the patient for dependence or addiction.

Patients

Habits, whether it is smoking, alcohol, or recreational drugs, it may start as harmless fun, or a leisure activity, but goes on to become dependence and then addiction due to receptors and neurotransmitters in the brain. Once the person is hooked, it is hard to get out of the habit due to cravings and withdrawal symptoms. Drug seekers become regular users and buyers, and this regular purchasing activity keeps manufacturers and distributors in steady business, and encourages them to sell more and expand their customer base to increase profits. Once drug companies notice the profits, they want more. 

Manufacturers of Prescription Opioid Drugs

Many drug companies have to compete with generics and other companies. As competition gets fierce, and there is a battle for market share, companies will go to any extent to push products. Companies often downplay the addictive effects of drugs and focus on the pain relief benefits of opioids. Companies also advertise heavily both to the doctors and to the general public. Drug companies seem to believe that the primary purpose of a business is to make a profit. They do not seem to take responsibility for the high number of overdose deaths. They seem to be interested in short term gains. Quarterly profits, stock price and CEO bonuses and bonuses of all people with performance based incentives seem to matter more to the companies.  

Medical Sales Representatives

           Sales representatives have quotas to fulfil. They have monthly and quarterly targets to meet. They have bosses yelling at them to increase sales or face lay off or termination. Sales is a high-pressure field, but also has high rewards. There are bonuses for meeting targets. Often times, the compensation structure is such that the bonus is more than the salary (or forms a significant part of the package). Faced with these pressures, they often use aggressive and unethical means to influence doctors to cave in and push sales. 

Drug Distributors and Pharmacies

           If there is an opportunity to make a quick buck, distributors do not seem to mind selling opioid drugs to illegal networks for a higher price. Pharmacists do not seem to mind selling drugs to people without valid prescriptions. There are many fake prescriptions brought to them.

The Opioid Epidemic and Crisis    

From a very high level, the two main determinants considered for this paper are (a) dependence or addiction of the patient and (b) easy availability of prescription opioids in the market, due to poor control for many reasons including medical negligence (of omission and / or commission) by physicians. The focus of interventions should be on (a) patient motivation and (b) physician motivation.  

Possible Negative Outcomes on National Economy and Security

           If steps are not taken, then the most common opioid user profiles – addicted white and native American middle-aged men in rural America, including in Ohio will continue to suffer or die. Their families will suffer too. Of course, all other demographics are being affected too. The power and security of a nation is not only in its military and economy, but also in the health of its people. Opioids are making America weak from the inside. It is not evident on the streets because it is happening slowly and gradually. Medicare and Medicaid are being misused. There is a great social and economic toll from opioids. People in power should not listen to lobbyists of drug companies, but should think of the welfare of people. For America to be safe and strong, its people have to be healthy and productive, not addicted and dependent on the healthcare system.

Further Research

           This is an interesting and timely topic for further research. There is a lot of information available about the opioid epidemic in the US. This is also a topic that begs for research and attention until the issue is solved. Bodies of victims are piling up fast and it is time for action.          

Final Thoughts

The opioid epidemic that we are witnessing today did not start overnight. It has been 20 years in the making. Drug companies went unchallenged for long. Fraud by doctors went undetected for long. Pill mills, diversion schemes, fake testing and doctor shopping went on for long. Medicare fraud went on for long. Now this needs to stop. The question however, is, who will bell the cat? Who will tame the drug companies? Who will control rogue doctors? Who will keep an eye on the pharmacists? Who has the guts to talk of a ban on opioids (except for the terminally ill, perhaps)? Who will instill wisdom in patients not to seek drugs or share their pills with others? Who will drill into the heads of youngsters that opioids are not fun activity, but dangerous indulgence? Who can escape the power of money and influence that drug companies wield? Public health professionals, organizations and schools must step up and do more than just watch, study, analyze, and write reports like this one. We must get actively involved in finding solutions to the problem. 

If you know that smoking (or any other habit) is addictive and bad for health, you do not ask your friend to smoke, for the fear that he / she will get hooked to tobacco. When doctors know that opioids are addictive, it is unethical for them to prescribe them excessively or without need just to make money and profit. In many cases, NSAIDs are as effective. Long after the pain has subsided and the initial euphoria of the opioid has disappeared, the addictive nature of opioids will still remain and take a toll with continued abuse. I hope that researchers invent non-addictive drugs that are as effective at pain management as opioids so that the world can say goodbye to prescription opioids drugs someday (except for special cases like cancer, perhaps). There is not an easy way for laypeople to take opioid drugs (especially on a long-term basis) and not get dependent – it is not their fault that they get hooked. Until then, we will have to face the reality of 92 deaths per day (and climbing), feel sorry for the fallen life expectancy in the US for a second year in a row, and keep doing our best as public health professionals.     

[This is a report written by me, Gerry Som, in December 2017. References have been listed. The conceptual model of SEM is original, made by me. Personal conclusions in Appendix Y are my own. My Email: gerrysom@yahoo.com]