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CVS is finally trying to do something about the opioid epidemic:
Drug-store chain CVS Health announced Thursday that it will limit opioid prescriptions in an effort to combat the epidemic that accounted for 64,000 overdose deaths last year alone.
Amid pressure on pharmacists, doctors, insurers and drug companies to take action, CVS also said it would boost funding for addiction programs, counseling and safe disposal of opioids.
[...] The company's prescription drug management division, CVS Caremark, which provides medications to nearly 90 million people, said it would use its sweeping influence to limit initial opioid prescriptions to seven-day supplies for new patients facing acute ailments.
It will instruct pharmacists to contact doctors when they encounter prescriptions that appear to offer more medication than would be deemed necessary for a patient's recovery. The doctor would be asked to revise it. Pharmacists already reach out to physicians for other reasons, such as when they prescribe medications that aren't covered by a patient's insurance plan.
The plan also involves capping daily dosages and initially requiring patients to get versions of the medications that dispense pain relief for a short period instead of a longer duration.
[...] "The whole effort here is to try to reduce the number of people who are going to end up with some sort of opioid addiction problem," CVS Chief Medical Officer Troyen Brennan said in an interview.
It appears this initiative is limited to initial filling of prescriptions — there is no mention of changes in the handling of refills.
(Score: 2) by Mykl on Tuesday September 26 2017, @01:32AM
Individual liberty is a great theory, but when taken to the extreme it doesn't work out so well in practice. Mostly because people don't bother properly informing themselves before making decisions (see: Anti-Vaxxers).
In any case, this isn't about individual liberty - this is about the free market. You are free to go to a different drug store if you don't want your pharmacist to care for the safety of their customers.
This is not about making life hard for those that need the drugs. This is about preventing people who don't really need the drugs from being hooked on them simply because it will make some doctors (and Big Pharma) some more money. If you do really need the drugs then your doctor will confirm this with CVS and you can walk out with your armful of opioids.
I'm actually a little surprised and impressed that CVS did this. It will place them at a relative disadvantage in the market, as those people who are being oversubscribed will simply go elsewhere (free market). Good for them.