Vizient applauds recent efforts by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to work with health care industry stakeholders to gain insights that will improve the controlled substance regulatory quota system. Vizient urges the DEA to take a more precise approach for the management of allocations by monitoring supply, and when appropriate, transferring allocations in a timely manner. This approach will ensure that these vital drugs are available for the patients that need them – when they need them.
While combating opioid abuse and addiction remain a top priority for Vizient and our members, we believe it is also important to balance DEA actions aimed at reducing abuse with providers’ ability to manage and treat post-surgical and medical pain for patients in acute care and certain, non-acute (e.g. palliative) settings. While well intentioned, taking steps that would limit the annual amount of opioids produced could inadvertently exacerbate the current shortages of injectable opioid products for the acute care setting.
Finding ways to mitigate the impact of drug shortages has been a focus of Vizient for years. While all drug shortages are capable of affecting patient care, some of the most adverse clinical situations have arisen due to shortages of injectable opioid products such as morphine, hydromorphone and fentanyl. The absence and/or limited supply of these products is not just an inconvenience for acute care providers, it is also a critical patient safety issue.
Vizient is the nation’s largest health care performance improvement company serving a diverse membership that includes academic medical centers, pediatric facilities, community hospitals, integrated health care delivery networks and non-acute health care providers.
About Vizient, Inc.
Vizient, Inc., the largest member-driven health care performance improvement company in the country, provides innovative data-driven solutions, expertise and collaborative opportunities that lead to improved patient outcomes and lower costs. Vizient’s diverse membership base includes academic medical centers, pediatric facilities, community hospitals, integrated health delivery networks and non-acute health care providers and represents approximately $100 billion in annual purchasing volume. The Vizient brand identity represents the integration of VHA Inc., University HealthSystem Consortium and Novation, which combined in 2015, as well as MedAssets’ Spend and Clinical Resource Management (SCM) segment, including Sg2, which was acquired in 2016. In 2018, Vizient again received a World’s Most Ethical Company designation from the Ethisphere Institute. Vizient’s headquarters are in Irving, Texas, with locations in Chicago and other cities across the United States. Please visit www.vizientinc.com as well as our newsroom, blog, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube pages for more information about the company.
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Vizient, Inc.
Angie Boliver, 972-830-7961
angie.boliver@vizientinc.com