The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has proposed two rules for prescribing controlled substances set to go into effect on May 11, according to a March 7 report from Medscape, but the proposals are not popular among all physicians.
The proposed rules, addressing Schedule III-V substances and the opioid use disorder treatment buprenorphine, will go into effect when the COVID-19 public health emergency comes to an end.
Both rules would allow a provider to prescribe a 30-day controlled substance supply to a patient via telehealth, but any additional prescriptions require face-to-face meetings.
Having to come into an office every month for a prescription can hinder patients, both from a time and a money perspective. Additionally, physician shortages are already plaguing health systems, and telehealth can save time for practitioners as well, according to Medscape.
The DEA is also proposing that state laws supersede its regulations, but some states have even more restrictive prescription rules in place.
Physicians and telehealth companies have expressed disappointment in the proposals.
"The continuity of care for countless Americans will be severed, potentially leaving these patients to fall through the cracks of our healthcare system without access to needed medications," Kyle Zebley, senior vice president of public policy for the American Telemedicine Association, told Medscape. "Requiring every patient who has initiated treatment via telemedicine during the pandemic to now visit a provider in-person clearly falls on the side of being overly restrictive."
"What this rule would do if instituted as written is prevent me from continuing care for patients unless I can get them in in person, and while I'd make every effort as a clinician, it's not always feasible to do so," Brian Hurley, MD, president-elect of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, told Medscape.
Only about 20 percent of Americans with opioid use disorders have access to prescription medications for the disorder, according to the report.