The Drug Addiction Treatment Act of
2000 (DATA 2000) was a groundbreaking
piece of legislation that allowed
physicians to prescribe schedule III-V
narcotics for the office-based opioid treatment
(OBOT) of opioid dependence. Treatment
without narcotics was already allowable.
However, narcotics were made illegal
under the Harrison Narcotic Act. As a result
of the FDA approving a schedule III-IV for
the treatment of opioid dependence, Suboxone
® (buprenorphine/naloxone) CIII and Subutex
® (buprenorphine) CIII became the only
agents available to physicians who have been
granted the clearance to participate in OBOT.
In addition to the pharmacological component
of treatment, the American Society of
Addiction Medicine states that defining opioid
dependence in a patient should not focus
only on physical dependence and tolerance,
but on aberrant behavior including a lack of
control over opioid use, compulsive opioid
use even in the face of negative health and social
consequences, and a preoccupation with
obtaining and using opioids.
Prevalence of Opioid Dependence
A presentation by Charles Ruetsch, PhD,
president and scientific director of Health Analytics,
LLC, in Columbia, Maryland, at the
Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy 21st
Annual Meeting & Showcase in Orlando,
Florida, provided an overview of the challenges
and advancements in the treatment of
opioid dependence.
Of the patients suffering from opioid dependence,
it is estimated that 17.3% are
seeking treatment. The decision to pursue
treatment can be met with numerous obstacles
including difficulty in locating an appropriate
healthcare professional who is
equipped to treat opioid dependence, the social
stigma of pursuing treatment, and maintaining
treatment once it has begun.