Addressing Treatment Gaps: Study Reveals Elderly Overdose Survivors Lack Vital Lifesaving Care
Most elderly individuals who Survivors Lack Vital a drug overdose often do not receive the necessary treatments that could prevent another potentially fatal overdose, according to a recent study.
Survivors Lack Vital
Researchers found that nearly 24,000 Medicaid beneficiaries died from a subsequent overdose out of the 137,000 who survived an overdose in 2020, translating to almost one in five (17%).
“People who have experienced one overdose are more likely to experience another,” noted Miriam Delphin-Rittmon, assistant secretary for mental health and substance use at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
However, effective treatment can significantly lower this risk. The study revealed the following reductions in the odds of dying from another overdose:
- 58% lower in individuals treated with methadone
- 52% lower in individuals treated with buprenorphine
- 30% lower in individuals treated with naloxone
- 75% lower in individuals who had access to behavioral health assessment or crisis services
“When survivors received gold-standard care such as medications for opioid use disorder and naloxone, the chances of dying from an overdose in the following year dropped dramatically,” Delphin-Rittmon emphasized. “In short, medications for opioid use disorder, opioid overdose reversal medications, and behavioral health supports save lives.”
Unfortunately, only a small percentage of the cohort received medications like methadone and buprenorphine for treating opioid addiction—just 4%. Similarly, only 6% received a prescription for naloxone, which can mitigate the effects of opioids.
Additionally, the study highlighted a significant delay in medication initiation post-overdose, with patients waiting nearly 72 days on average.
Overall, 89% of beneficiaries received behavioral health services within the year following their overdose, with an average of 15 days of treatment.
Published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, the study underscores the critical need for high-quality care following an overdose and emphasizes the remaining opportunities to connect individuals with essential treatments.
“Survivors Lack Vital These findings underscore the importance of high-quality care following an overdose, and the opportunities that remain to connect people with needed care,” stated Dr. Dora Hughes, acting chief medical officer for the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. “Increasing the number of beneficiaries accessing these medications in a timely manner will save lives.”
Survivors Lack Vital The study contributes to mounting evidence indicating that effective methods to prevent fatal overdoses are often underutilized in the care of individuals grappling with opioid addiction.
Survivors Lack Vital At a time when over 100,000 people continue to die each year from overdose, we must prioritize making effective treatments and tools accessible—especially to those who are at the highest risk,” remarked Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).
Connecting with individuals in emergency departments or after they experience a nonfatal overdose presents a crucial opportunity to provide immediate support, offer life-saving tools, facilitate treatment engagement, and promote recovery, Volkow added in a NIDA news release.
