Alliance to Prevent Abuse of Medicines praises Obama plan

The Alliance to Prevent the Abuse of Medicines recently said the group supports the Obama administration’s proposed budget item to fund efforts toward the prevention and reduction of prescription drug abuse.

President Obama’s budget for the 2016 fiscal year includes more than $100 million in new investments throughout the Department of Health and Human Services to reduce the abuse of prescription opioids and heroin. The budget will provide more funding to each state so that prescription drug monitoring programs can be expanded.

The alliance -- a nonprofit coalition created by the American Medical Association, the Healthcare Distribution Management Association, Cardinal Health, Millennium Health, Prime Therapeutics, Teva Pharmaceuticals and CVS health -- is a partnership of primary stakeholders in the prescription-drug supply chain.

In 2013, 43,982 drug-overdose deaths were reported in the U.S., and 22,767 of them were related to prescription drugs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

“This growing epidemic can only begin to be addressed by private and public organizations working together on comprehensive solutions that are focused on prevention, education, early intervention, monitoring, treatment and proper disposal,” the Alliance said. “The president’s proposed budget encourages us in our work as we continue to develop and offer policy solutions to address diversion, abuse and misuse.”