The Military Troops and Opiates

Unfortunate that methadone is said to “top the list” of killers in contributing to military deaths, without reference to the fact that it remains the gold standard most effective treatment of dependence. Of course, the fact that until recently FDA was recommending analgesic doses that can be lethal is also not mentioned. Anyway...

Headline in Navy Times Sept 3 “Rx for death: Troop deaths soar with prescriptions for war wounded.” The article describes the dramatic increase in drug deaths in recent years, which in large measure is attributed to the widespread use of opiate analgesics (it reports that “about one in seven soldiers is currently prescribed some form of opiate”). The article does not mention the fact that Defense Dept and VA medical insurance continues to refuse payment for the gold standard treatment of opiate dependence: maintenance with methadone or buprenorphine. Get the full article by clicking here