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Friday, May 11, 2018

How to Deal with the Opioid Crisis: Look to France!

How France Cut Heroin Overdoses by 79 Percent in 4 Years ... And the United States could, too from the Atlantic
"In 1995, France made it so any doctor could prescribe buprenorphine without any special licensing or training. Buprenorphine, a first-line treatment for opioid addiction, is a medication that reduces cravings for opioids without becoming addictive itself.  With the change in policy, the majority of buprenorphine prescribers in France became primary-care doctors, rather than addiction specialists or psychiatrists. Suddenly, about 10 times as many addicted patients began receiving medication-assisted treatment, and half the country’s heroin users were being treated. Within four years, overdose deaths had declined by 79 percent."

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