Case Management

Connecticut institutes guidelines to combat opioid addiction

Case Management Insider, March 17, 2015

Opioid addiction is a growing problem in the U.S., and to combat it the state of Connecticut recently instituted guidelines for prescribing these drugs in the emergency department (ED).

“These guidelines for responsible prescribing will help reduce the risk of opioid overuse that can lead to addiction and death in Connecticut communities,” according to a joint press release from the Connecticut Hospital Association, Connecticut State Medical Society, and The Connecticut College of Emergency Physicians.
 
About 1,900 visits to Connecticut hospital EDs last year were related to opioid overdoses, a 51% increase from 2011, said Connecticut Department of Public Health Commissioner Jewel Mullen, M.D., in the press release. The goal of the guidelines is to allow practitioners to prescribe these drugs when needed, while minimizing the potential for patients to abuse them.
 
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