Opinion
FSMB: Policy guidelines on opioid addiction treatment are online
LETTER — Posted Oct. 17, 2005
Regarding "Treating opioid addiction may get a bit easier" (Article, Sept. 12): In the wake of legislation in 2000 that allowed, for the first time in almost a century, physicians to treat opioid addiction in office-based settings, the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment and the Federation of State Medical Boards developed guidelines to educate regulators and physicians on new treatment modalities offering an alternative in the treatment of opioid addiction.
The Model Policy Guidelines for Opioid Addiction Treatment in the Medical Office also encourage consistent standards and promote public health by availing opioid-addicted patients of appropriate treatment.
The guidelines are available online (link).
James N. Thompson, MD, president and CEO, Federation of State Medical Boards, Dallas
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/10/17/edlt1017.htm.