Mass. Medical Society is pushing to break down barriers to treatment

The physicians of the Massachusetts Medical Society thank the Globe for its March 17 editorial, “Why is it still so difficult to get life-saving addiction medications?” which sheds light on the barriers to accessing treatment.

Opioid use disorder is a chronic disease, and for many patients, evidence-based, medication treatment is a critical component of a pathway to recovery.

The medical society has long advocated for measures that would ensure that individuals who suffer from opioid use disorder can safely access medications such as methadone and buprenorphine. Removing barriers to care is crucial to saving lives. These barriers include limits on take-home doses, medical and social stigma, a shortage of pharmacies that stock addiction medications, and the lack of access to physicians, including pediatricians, who are trained to prescribe them.

Too often, these obstacles both deny patients — many of whom are from historically marginalized populations and medically underserved communities — medically proven treatment for opioid use disorder and undermine access to clinically appropriate, evidence-based, and equitable health care.

The medical society continues to support federal legislation that would fund key national programs to address the opioid epidemic and support patients affected by substance use disorder, and it urges Congress to pass legislation to expand access to methadone.

We can make an impact by eliminating the need for patients to make daily visits to methadone clinics to receive medication. The establishment of overdose prevention centers, where people with substance use disorder could use drugs in a controlled setting, would also be a lifesaver.

DR. BARBARA SPIVAK

President Massachusetts Medical Society

Waltham