Harrisburg, PA – The Wolf Administration continues to make progress to combat the opioid epidemic one month into Governor Tom Wolf’s statewide opioid emergency declaration, which Governor Tom Wolf signed on January 10.
“The opioid disaster declaration was meant to cut through red tape and get a wide range of departments and agencies working together to address this crisis,” Governor Wolf said. “The Opioid Operational Command Center (OOCC) has been essential in helping to coordinate resources and break down silos within state government to get resources where they are needed locally.”
The latest initiative to be implemented by the OOCC is a protocol for hospitals and birthing centers to report Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS). Cases of babies with NAS who are born on or after January 10 to mothers who are residents of Pennsylvania will be reported by hospitals or other birthing facilities to the Department of Health (DOH). This will be used to determine the number of cases of NAS in the state, and to help identify locations where cases are clustered.
“This data is yet another source of information to determine some of our communities most affected by the opioid crisis in Pennsylvania,” Acting Health Secretary and Physician General Dr. Rachel Levine said. “We will be able to use this data to track where our most vulnerable are being born with symptoms of withdrawal so we can target intervention techniques as we work to reduce the number of cases of NAS in Pennsylvania.”
Initiatives currently underway under the disaster declaration include:
- DOH and the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency continue to work with Emergency Medical Services providers on the naloxone leave-behind program;
- The Department of Corrections has implemented an emergency contract to expand the advanced body scanner pilot program currently in place at Wernersville that is used on re-entrants returning to the facility. Since it was installed there have not been any overdoses at the facility;
- Birth certificate fees have been waived by DOH for people suffering from opioid-use disorder so they can receive identification required for treatment facilities; and
- The face-to-face physician requirement for Narcotic Treatment Program (NTP) to allow initial intake review by a Certified Registered Nurse Practitioner (CRNP) or Physician Assistant (PA) waiver was published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
“In just one month, the OOCC is not only collecting important data and unifying state resources, but is finding new ways for state agencies to work together to fight this epidemic,” Ray Barishansky, OOCC Incident Commander said. “In the coming weeks, we will be able to use the data we are collecting to target resources where communities need them.”
Governor Wolf and state agencies have been increasing efforts in the fight against prescription drug abuse in multiple areas, including numerous programs and initiatives:
- Working with the legislature to establish a new law limiting the number of opioids that can be prescribed to a minor and to individuals discharged from emergency rooms to seven days;
- Strengthening the PDMP through the legislative process so that doctors are required and able to check the system each time they prescribe opioids and benzodiazepines;
- Forming new prescribing guidelines to help doctors who provide opioid prescriptions to their patients, including guidelines specific to orthopedics and sports medicine;
- Creating the warm handoff guideline to facilitate referrals from the emergency department to substance abuse treatment;
- Teaming with the legislature to establish education curriculum on safe prescribing for medical schools; and
- Awarding four $1 million grants for medication-assisted treatment using a hub and spoke model for Pennsylvanians who are uninsured, under-insured or have private insurance.
For more information on the state’s efforts to battle the opioid epidemic, visit https://www.pa.gov/guides/opioid-epidemic/ or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
MEDIA CONTACT: April Hutcheson, Department of Health, 717-787-1783
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