Governor Dayton releases final guidelines to cut the risk of opioid addiction, developed by health care and community partners under bipartisan legislation enacted in 2015

Governor Dayton also announces $700,000 in opioid prevention grants to eight Greater Minnesota communities, to use proven strategies to reduce opioid abuse before it begins

Governor urges Legislature to support bipartisan “Penny-a-Pill” proposal; there were 395 opioid overdose deaths in Minnesota in 2016, an 18 percent increase over the previous year

ST. PAUL, MN – Governor Mark Dayton today released new state guidelines designed to cut the risk of opioid addiction. The new guidelines, released last December in draft form, were developed by a work group made up of health care providers and community partners, and will help doctors and other health care providers decide when to prescribe these powerful pain killers, how much to prescribe, and how to monitor their use. Governor Dayton also announced $700,000 in new opioid prevention grants, which will fund local teams in eight Greater Minnesota communities to reduce opioid abuse before it begins.

In addition to the administrative actions announced today, Governor Dayton again called on the Legislature to support the bipartisan Opioid Stewardship Program, which would fund opioid abuse prevention and treatment strategies across Minnesota through a “penny-a-pill” fee on pharmaceutical companies who sell opioids in Minnesota. Right now, that proposal has been stripped from legislation in the House of Representatives, and stalled in Senate committees.

“Our Administration is taking aggressive steps to reduce the flow of dangerous opioids, improve treatment options, and save lives. But we must do far more to reduce the terrible harm these drugs are causing in our communities,” said Governor Dayton. “As public servants, we should be protecting Minnesota families whose lives are being devastated by addiction, instead of protecting the special interests of large pharmaceutical companies who have perpetuated and profited from this problem.”

Opioid addiction has had a devastating effect in Minnesota, and across the country. Overdoses involving prescription opioids account for more than any other drug, and the great majority of heroin and other illicit opioid users started with prescriptions. In 2016, 395 people died from opioid overdoses in Minnesota, an 18 percent increase over the previous year. 

A new study released today details opioid prescribing patterns from 2012 to 2015, showing that though the rate of opioid prescribing declined, the average number of days per opioid prescription increased over that time period, and nearly a third of Minnesotans with an opioid prescription had multiple providers. Several rural counties recorded significantly higher rates of prescribing in 2015, as much as three times the state average.

About the Opioid Prescribing Guidelines

Minnesota’s opioid crisis continues to be driven by the over-prescribing and misuse of prescription opioid pain relievers. Any use of opioids increases the likelihood of chronic use, and when too many opioids are prescribed, many go unused, making their way into communities where they can end up being misused.

The new opioid prescribing guidelines – developed collaboratively by the Opioid Prescribing Work Group, a group of physicians, pharmacists, consumer and law enforcement representatives, and state agency staff – focus on ways to help communities reduce opioid prescriptions; encourage safe, consistent standards when opioids are called for; and deliver compassionate support to people who need to use opioids longer-term.

“Minnesota’s health care providers, law enforcement, and policy makers are working hard to address the opioid crisis, and to improve prescribing coordination and safety,” said Acting Human Services Commissioner Chuck Johnson. “These guidelines promote the safe and responsible use of opioids up front, preventing problems down the road.  We urge Legislative Leaders to work with us, to ensure the state and our partners have the resources necessary to fight opioid abuse and save lives.” 

The guidelines address opioid prescribing for immediate pain relief, as well as short- and long-term uses. The guidelines offer especially strong guidance for several weeks following an injury or surgery, which is a critical time to prevent long-term opioid use. In most cases, the use of opioids is not the best option for treating chronic pain, and may actually worsen it. 

The work group operated under the Opioid Prescribing Improvement Project, a two-year program created in 2015 under a bipartisan proposal in the Minnesota Legislature signed into law by Governor Dayton. Minnesota officials are encouraging all providers statewide to adopt the new guidelines. Providers whose prescribing is excessive and who participate in Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare will be required to participate in a quality improvement program to help them meet the new standards.

About the Opioid Abuse Community Prevention Grants

Last year, Governor Dayton worked with the Legislature to secure nearly $1 million to establish new grant funding for Opioid Abuse Community Prevention Pilot Projects. The community initiatives are modelled on a successful program initiated by CHI St. Gabriel’s Health to address opioid abuse and addiction problem in Little Falls and Morrison County. The efforts of Morrison County have gained national attention as a successful and promising clinical and community-based approach for dealing the current opioid public health crisis. 

“Thanks to action taken by the Minnesota Legislature last year, new grant funding will support proven opioid abuse prevention strategies in eight communities across Minnesota,” said Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm. “However, as recent MDH research shows, there is a need to impact prescribing patterns, and substantial new resources are needed to address this crisis in every community in the state. I ask legislative leaders to again join us, and support bipartisan proposals to fund opioid abuse prevention, treatment, and enforcement strategies throughout Minnesota.” 

Today, Governor Dayton announced that eight Greater Minnesota communities have been selected to receive a total of $700,000 in this new grant funding.

The new grants will support controlled substance care teams that will consist of pharmacists, physicians, social workers, nurse care coordinators, mental health professionals, and others to implement tested strategies to reduce opioid abuse through care coordination, social service needs, prescriber education and assistance, proper opioid disposal, and partner engagement.

About the New Opioid Prescribing Study

Governor Dayton also released new research today from the Minnesota Department of Health, studying opioid prescribing patterns from 2012 to 2015, during which time opioid-related deaths dramatically rose in Minnesota. The analysis found that while the opioid prescription rate in Minnesota declined from 16.5 percent of insured Minnesotans in 2012 to 15.6 percent of insured Minnesotans in 2015, the average number of days per prescription increased over the same time period. The new study also shows that many Minnesotans received opioids from more than one prescriber during a year. In fact, in 2015, about 61,500 Minnesotans had four or more opioid prescribers in a one-year period. 

The analysis was based on data from the Minnesota All Payer Claims Database, which includes private insurance and Medicare and Medicaid claims data but does not include opioid prescriptions from the Veteran’s Affairs Health System or Indian Health Services. By analyzing this database, researchers were able to gain a deeper understanding of prescribing patterns. The analysis also excluded opioid prescriptions for cancer. 

The full study can be found online here. 

“Penny-A-Pill” Proposal and State Efforts Underway

Last week, Governor Dayton sent a letter to Republican Legislative Leaders in the Minnesota House and Senate, urging immediate action to address Minnesota’s opioid crisis. Joined by a bipartisan coalition of legislators, Governor Mark Dayton announced his legislative proposals to combat the opioid crisis and save lives across Minnesota 72 days ago. As of today, the House and Senate have yet to vote on any of the proposed lifesaving measures.

Building on past actions taken by his administration, Governor Dayton’s opioid abuse proposals would annually invest about $12 million in high-impact strategies to treat and prevent opioid abuse, especially in communities that are disproportionately impacted by opioid addiction. 

To learn more about Governor Dayton’s proposals to combat the opioid crisis, including actions already underway, CLICK HERE.