Surgeon General: Prescribers must step up to help end opioid abuse

U.S Surgeon General Vivek Murthy with Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey Chairwoman Elaine Pozycki and Executive Director Angelo Valente at NJ Turn the Tide event.

United States Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy is touring the nation to pressure drug prescribers to take an active role in the fight to end the opioid epidemic engulfing the country.

As part of the "Turn the Tide" tour, Murthy is visiting states that have been hard hit by opioid abuse with his concept of "prescribers talking to prescribers" in the hopes of finding solutions, learning from communities that are finding creative ways to tackle the issue, and change cultural perceptions surrounding addiction so that is is viewed as a chronic illness that must be treated.

In addition to the tour, Vivek also plans to send letters to more than two million prescribers and healthcare pros asking them to improve their prescribing practices, educate patients on the risks of opioid addiction, and connect addicts to "evidence-based treatment". The letter will also contain a pocket card for opioid prescribing, based on recent opioid prescribing guidance from the CDC.

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There is also an online resource, the TurnTheTideRx.org website, which launched Monday as a resource for physicians and their patients.

According to CDC data, 78 Americans die each day from opioid overdoses, and heroin-related deaths more than tripled from 2010-2014. Moreover, roughly three out of four new heroin users said they abused prescription opioids first. Also, veterans are twice as likely to die from an accidental opioid overdose as non-veterans, according to a 2011 study of the VA system.

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Murthy took his message to New Jersey this week, speaking at a forum held at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston. New Jersey is one of many states battling widespread opioid abuse. Heroin deaths in New Jersey spiked 160 percent since 2010, with more than 1,200 overdose-related deaths last year alone.  In 2015, more than 28,000 New Jersey residents sought treatment for heroin or opioid abuse, surging past previous year's figures.

Twitter: @BethJSanborn