From the Editor
Dear reader:
The statistics are staggering.
Every day, more than 90 Americans die from an overdose of opioids. Deaths caused by prescription opioids or other derivatives such as heroin or fentanyl rose by 27% between 2015 and 2016. Drug overdoses are the No. 1 killer of Americans under the age of 50. And federal data show that 2.4 million Americans live with an opioid addiction.
In 2015, the opioid epidemic cost the U.S. economy more than $500 billion. According to HHS, the rate of adult hospital inpatient stays due to opioid addiction nearly doubled between 2000 and 2012.
Over the past few years, providers and insurers have taken steps to combat an epidemic that, in some part, began with overzealous prescribing habits. Given the grim statistics, now is the time for healthcare professionals to ramp up those efforts, mobilize and save lives.
On April 25-26, Modern Healthcare will host an Opioid Crisis Symposium in Baltimore. This event will gather some of the most progressive minds working to reverse the opioid crisis. Key speakers include:
Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen, who have implemented innovations aimed at saving people from overdoses.
Richard Baum, acting director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the federal agency tasked with identifying and promoting legislation and regulation to battle the epidemic.
Thomas F. Zenty III, CEO of Cleveland’s University Hospitals, which collaborated with community organizations in a successful move to prevent addiction to opioids.
Dr. Doug Nemecek, chief medical officer for behavioral health at Cigna, which has led payer efforts to increase access to treatment.
On behalf of Modern Healthcare, it is my pleasure to invite you to participate in the solutions-driven conversations that will take place during this gathering. Attendees will have opportunities to interact with the influencers and innovators who are overcoming obstacles and engineering change in the fight to reduce injuries and deaths from opioid misuse and abuse.
Come help drive solutions and develop best practices to end the opioid epidemic.
To register, please go to ModernHealthcare.com/OpioidSymposium or call Jodi Sniegocki at 312-649- 5459.
I look forward to meeting you April 25-26 in Baltimore.
Sincerely, Aurora Aguilar Editor