In its last days, the Trump administration announces a major shift in addiction medicine policy, giving doctors dramatically more flexibility to prescribe the popular addiction medication buprenorhphine. The change will allow almost all physicians to prescribe the drug—without undergoing a training program and receiving a special waiver—thereby significantly increasing access to the medication, which reduces addiction cravings as part of drug treatment. The decision comes as drug overdose deaths have soared to record levels, due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic and the reduction of services by financially-strapped treatment providers. As of now, only 66,000 physicians and another 25,000 prescribers such as NPs or Pas have the waiver. More than 2 million Americans are estimated to be in need of treatment for opioid use disorder, but only a fraction of them obtain services.
Meanwhile, put Virginia on the list of states urging fast-track marijuana legalization. Governor Ralph Northam has unveiled legislation to legalize recreational weed within two years, as part of a bill that includes a 21 percent sales tax and a licensing program to enable people harmed by the disparate enforcement of marijuana laws to set up a business in the new market for the drug.
And finally, a marijuana activist group in Washington, D.C., where cannabis is legal, says it will launch a program to award those who get a COVID vaccine with a bag of pot. Organizers say the “Joints for Jabs” effort is aimed at encouraging vaccinations—and also publicizing campaigns to legalize cannabis nationwide.