WASHINGTON — Following is the statement of Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, CEO of the American Psychological Association, regarding the Senate passage of legislation to address the opioid epidemic:
“The American Psychological Association commends the Senate for passing bipartisan legislation to help address our nation’s opioid epidemic. Now that both the House and Senate have passed their respective bills, we urge members of Congress to work together so that meaningful legislation can be signed into law this year. The bills include several provisions that will help reduce overuse of opioid prescriptions and increase access to substance use treatment, recovery and support services. APA is continuing to share recommendations with Congress to improve the legislation.
“Tragically, we are still in the middle of the crisis, and it’s getting worse, not better. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that more than 72,000 Americans died of a drug overdose in 2017, which is an almost 10 percent increase over the previous year.
“While the legislation passed today is a step in the right direction, greater investments are needed to respond to a crisis of this magnitude. We cannot counter the opioid epidemic without developing an effective, evidence-based substance abuse treatment system. In fact, only about one in 10 Americans with a substance use disorder receives adequate treatment, and this statistic won’t change without major new investments in the full spectrum of prevention, treatment and recovery services. We did this for HIV/AIDS, and now we need to do it with opioids.”
Evans called on policymakers to prioritize work in the following areas:
- Promoting nonpharmacologic treatment for chronic pain, and increasing access to integrated pain management services, including treatment for comorbid mental health and substance use disorders.
- Providing a comprehensive continuum of services for those addicted to opioids, including psychotherapy and counseling as part of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and other psychosocial interventions beyond MAT.
- Promoting the adoption of electronic health records by mental health and substance use treatment providers to foster the delivery of high-quality, coordinated and integrated health care services.
- Providing recovery support services, including housing, education and supported employment for those struggling with addiction.
- Expanding the mental health and substance use treatment provider workforce, and improving health care providers’ effectiveness through education and training.
- Increasing investments in research on psychosocial interventions to prevent and treat chronic pain, opioid addiction and other substance use disorders.
- Improving the service delivery system by making administrative and infrastructure changes, including strengthening the enforcement of mental health and substance use parity laws, reforming payment systems, changing child welfare system processes so that families affected by opioid addiction are kept together, and improving the availability and quality of services provided by drug courts.
The American Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA's membership includes nearly 115,700 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives.