This week NCPA and the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy began distributing a first-of-its-kind practice guideline to the nation’s community pharmacists. It’s part of an ambitious effort to increase access to buprenorphine, a lifesaving treatment for opioid use disorder. Studies have found fewer than 60 percent of pharmacies have the medication in stock, putting patients with OUD at risk of treatment interruptions and overdose.
The Pharmacy Access to Resources and Medication for Opioid Use Disorder Guideline is designed to educate pharmacists about the importance of providing access to buprenorphine and help them navigate a complex set of regulatory and clinical barriers to access. It’s been endorsed by a wide array of professional societies and advocacy organizations, including the American Society of Addiction Medicine, the American Pharmacists Association, the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and Vital Strategies. Read more.
Join us on Oct. 17 at 1 p.m. ET for a webinar on the evidence supporting the PhARM-OUD guideline to improve buprenorphine access; register here. We’ll also discuss the new guidelines at the 2024 Annual Convention at a session on Oct. 28 titled “It’s Okay to Dispense: Applying NCPA and NABP’s PhARM-OUD Guidelines to Improve Access to Buprenorphine in Your Pharmacy.”
