Ophelia Applauds the DEA's Extension on Flexibilities

• The DEA's extension continues access to lifesaving treatment for people struggling with opioid use disorder (OUD)
• Opioid overdose is the #1 cause of death for Americans under 50.

NEW YORK, May 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Opioid addiction treatment provider Ophelia applauds the DEA's "Temporary Extension of COVID-19 Telemedicine Flexibilities for Prescription of Controlled Medications" that was issued yesterday. The temporary rule maintains continued access to lifesaving care for current and future patients undergoing OUD treatment via telehealth.

The newly issued temporary rules will go into effect on May 11, 2023, when the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) officially expires. The rule extends the full set of telemedicine flexibilities enacted during the PHE for another six months until November 11th, 2023. Patients who have established a relationship with a telemedicine provider by that date will have 12 months to complete a physical exam in order to remain in care. Earlier this year, the DEA announced proposed rules that were far more restrictive but received an astounding 38,000+ comments from the medical community, advocacy groups, patients, and families. The DEA will use the 6-month extension to review these comments and incorporate them into a revised final rule.

Ophelia provides medication-assisted treatments (MAT) for opioid use disorder, the gold standard of care according to the CDC, AMA, and SAMHSA. MAT includes the use of medication and counseling and is proven to reduce overdoses by 76%

"We are grateful to the DEA for listening to our concerns and extending telehealth flexibilities for OUD until a safe and clinically responsible solution can be reached," said Zack Gray, founder and CEO of Ophelia. "We hope that the final rule will avoid legal requirements and instead allow medical authorities to set the standards of care. We remain committed to working with the DEA to help shape policy that expands access to evidence-based treatment for every American in need."

About Ophelia
Ophelia is a digital provider of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder (OUD), committed to making evidence-based treatment universally accessible. Its mission is to remove barriers for the 80% of Americans with OUD who are unable to access care and the 50,000+ MAT clinicians who are unable to treat patients due to a lack of infrastructure, training, and support. At its core is the Ophelia Care Model, a team-based clinical model and software platform developed by leading experts in addiction medicine and psychiatry. Ophelia is licensed to provide care in 36 states and contracted with Medicaid, Medicare, and Commercial insurers covering 85 million American lives.

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SOURCE Ophelia