As the opioid epidemic continues many companies are pitching in to help combat the epidemic including Walmart who recently launched a groundbreaking disposal solution.
The disposal solution is available at no cost and is known as DisposeRX. The small packet contains ingredients that when emptied into a pill bottle with warm water, ultimately enable patients to responsibly dispose of leftover medication in their trash. More than 65% of people who are misusing prescription opioids are getting them from family and friends prescriptions that are leftover after treatment. DisposeRX will allow patients to destroy leftover opioids without ever leaving their home and help prevent these prescriptions from falling into the wrong hands. The new disposal solution will be available in addition to counseling on proper opioid use when filling an opioid prescription. The pharmacist will now be directed to counsel patients on both how to use DiposeRX and the risk associated with opioid use. DisposeRX is able to divert powders, pills, tablets, capsules, liquids, and patches into a biodegradable gel. The chemicals in the packet are listed as safe by the FDA. DisposeRX along with a safety information brochure will automatically be given to patients filling a new Class II opioid prescription at any Walmart pharmacy. Patients with a chronic Class II opioid prescription will be offered a DisposeRX packet every 6 months, and existing pharmacy patients can also request a free DisposeRX at any time. Walmart will also begin stocking Naloxone in its pharmacies, behind the counter, for sale and dispensing by a pharmacist in all states that will allow them to do so.
Click here for more information on DisposeRX and Walmart’s efforts to combat the epidemic.
Walmart is not the only company working to combat the Opioid Epidemic. CBS has released a docu-series that focuses on the stories of addicts, their families, and the effects of opioids in America. They hope the series will help curb this epidemic that kills 91 Americans a day. This is a five-part docu-series that began Friday, February 2nd on Showtime and places the audience in unvarnished scenes of human suffering. CBS hopes that this series will help bring attention to the real effects and the tragedies surrounding the Opioid Epidemic. Click here for more information on the series.
A number of insurance companies have also jumped in and introduced new policies to help combat the epidemic. Aetna has waived co-pays for the drug Narcan, a drug that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, and Cigna has stopped covering OxyContin, a synthetic analgesic drug that is similar to morphine.
