Medicaid Expands Access to Lifesaving Naloxone
<p>Many state Medicaid programs have been fighting the opioid epidemic by purchasing and distributing the lifesaving opioid-reversal drug naloxone. In a new post on <em>To the Point</em>, Harvard’s Richard G. Frank and Carrie E. Fry report on evidence showing that states that have actively promoted naloxone experienced 9 percent to 11 percent reductions in opioid-related deaths.</p><p>The increased use of naloxone from 2013 to 2016 appears to have been driven in part by the expansion of Medicaid eligibility.</p>
<p>The authors say the proposed cuts to state Medicaid funding in both the House and Senate health care bills could jeopardize financial access to this lifesaving drug. “Although both bills provide some funding for the opioid crisis, it is likely not enough to provide the treatment and prevention services that state Medicaid agencies currently provide, potentially leaving the family and friends of those who use and misuse opioids without lifesaving medication.”</p>