Opioid addiction has become a national problem, but government officials in Massachusetts are being more specific in their observations. They’re using words like “crisis” and “epidemic” when describing the prevalence of opioid abuse in their state –especially among teenagers.
To help combat opioid addiction in high school students, Massachusetts legislators passed a bill in early March that limits first-time prescriptions of opioids. According to the bill, a first-time opioid subscription cannot exceed a seven-day supply, and public school students must be verbally screened and tested for risk of opioid addiction.
Combating the Crisis
The bill is 77 sections long, and it covers processes, deadlines and milestones for practicing physicians and schools. The two primary movements, however – the seven-day prescription limit, and the verbal screenings – were both given a tremendous amount of thought and care.
The seven-day prescription limit is aimed at controlling the amount of pills that are never taken by patients. Massachusetts Medical Society president Dennis Dimitri, M.D. said the seven-day limit, “should reduce the amount of prescription drugs that can be diverted to abuse or misuse, and at the same time allow a reasonable time for prescriptions for those patients who truly need pain relief.”
The in-school screenings are also being delicately handled. A campus professional, likely a school nurse, will have confidential conversations with students about drug use. If the student presents him or herself as a risk, the professional can refer the student to counseling.
The bill says, “Screenings shall occur on an annual basis and occur at two different grade levels as recommended by the department of elementary and secondary education.” Parents are notified about these screenings at the beginning of the school year, and if they so choose, they can opt out any time prior to the screening.
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Moving Forward
Massachusetts has been fighting against opioid addiction for several years, and now that the struggle has reached children, officials are working desperately to find solutions. Measures have failed in the past, however, like Governor Charlie Baker’s decision to give doctors full authority to commit patients to drug treatment facilities.
This new bill has been criticized for being a less effective version of previous efforts. It had to make it through the House of Representatives, skepticism and all, before it became law.
But legislators are eager to see an end to opioid addiction. The bill passed unanimously, 153-0.
State Representative Elizabeth Malia, a chairwoman of the Joint Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse, has become a voice for the movement.
“This public health crisis is unlike anything in this state most of us have ever experienced,” she said. “The bill that came out of the conference committee combines the best of the House’s offering, the governor’s offering and the Senate offering.”
Like many others, Malia is unsure whether the bill will prove to be effective. Getting it passed, however, is a huge step in the right direction.
“The fact that we are having these discussions night now is really a good sign that people are responding to it,” she said. “We are going to start talking about this in school because we have to save our kids’ lives.”
