Lodi News-Sentinel

Opioid treatments sought for replacemen­t health bill

- By Tony Pugh

WASHINGTON — Two Republican senators from states hard hit by the opioid epidemic want $45 billion for drug treatment programs folded into the Senate’s Obamacare replacemen­t bill that will be unveiled on Thursday.

But health experts say their 10-year funding request won’t come close to providing the services needed by untold thousands of opioid abusers who are expected to lose their private health insurance and Medicaid coverage under the GOP legislatio­n. That’s because opioid abusers typically have other health problems, like HIV, hepatitis C, chronic pain or mental health problems that require additional treatment and services.

Funding only patients’ substance abuse treatment without addressing their other needs would likely prove ineffectiv­e, said Dr. Corey Waller, who chairs the legislativ­e advocacy committee of the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

“You can’t treat any medical condition in isolation,” Waller said. “It just seems illogical at every level.”

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