BALTIMORE, March 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Patients undergoing
opioid therapy for chronic pain who may not be following their
prescription regimen have significantly higher overall healthcare
costs, Ameritox Ltd. announced recently. The study was published in
The American Journal of Managed Care.
“Considering all of the discussion right now around healthcare
reform and controlling healthcare spending, this study highlights
an opportunity to better manage a costly and at-risk population of
patients – those on chronic opioid therapy,” said Harry L.
Leider, MD, co-author of the study. Dr. Leider is Chief
Medical Officer at Ameritox – a corporate sponsor of the
research –and a faculty member with the American College of
Physician Executives. “By focusing on patients who receive opioids
and are likely non-adherent, clinicians can take concrete steps to
improve patient safety and, ultimately, lower costs.”
The study analyzed managed care claims of more than 18 million
patients, identifying a subset of pain patients on chronic opioid
therapy. The study determined that patients on chronic opioid
therapy who were likely non-adherent, as determined by urine drug
testing results, had 14 percent higher healthcare costs and 35
percent more hospital days.
Likely non-adherence to prescribed opioid therapy was identified
through urine drug monitoring results and included patients with
results of a prescribed medication not found, the presence of a
non-prescribed drug, the presence of an illicit drug found in the
urine, or based on the expected amount of a prescribed drug
found.
The study concluded that improving adherence among patients with
chronic pain could help reduce healthcare spending and improve
health outcomes. “Opioids are an important tool in pain
management,” added Leider. “This study reinforces a growing belief
that pain medication monitoring must be part of the pain management
paradigm. Urine
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