Updated CDC Guidelines
The CDC updated their Clinical Practice Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Pain. The Oregon Medical Board is in the process of updating the OMB's Statement of Philosophy on Pain Management.
DEA Removes Waiver Requirement to Prescribe Buprenorphine
On December 29, 2022, Congress signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, thus removing the federal requirement for practitioners to submit a Notice of Intent (have a waiver) to prescribe medications, such as buprenorphine, for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD).
All DEA registrants should be aware of the following:
- A DATA-Waiver registration is no longer required to treat patients with buprenorphine for opioid use disorder.
- Going forward, all prescriptions for buprenorphine only require a standard DEA registration number. The previously used DATA-Waiver registration numbers are no longer needed for any prescription.
- There are no longer any limits or patient caps on the number of patients a prescriber may treat for opioid use disorder with buprenorphine.
- The Act does not impact existing state laws or regulations that may be applicable.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act also introduced new training requirements for all prescribers. These requirements will not go into effect until June 21, 2023. The DEA and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are actively working to provide further guidance; additional information on these requirements will soon be pr available from the DEA. Additionally, these new requirements do not impact the changes related to elimination of the DATA-Waiver Program described above.
Visit SAMHSA.gov to learn more.
Pain Management Required Course and Updated Resources
All Oregon Medical Board licensees must complete the Oregon Pain Management Commission's (OPMC) continuing education course
Changing the Conversation About Pain," at initial licensure and every two years . The course now includes topics such as health equity. See the Continuing Education page for details.
Additionally, a workgroup comprised of representatives of the OPMC, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) Public Health, and Providence Health & Safety, as well as six clinical experts, have developed the Pain Education Toolkit, which offers patient and provider educational resources on topics such as sleep, nutrition, and medications.
Visit OregonPainGuidance.org/paineducationtoolkit to access the toolkit. A clinician-focused version is also available at OregonPainGuidance.org/paineducationtoolkitforclinicians.
Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP)
All Oregon-licensed physicians and PAs who have a DEA number are required to register for the PDMP. Register at oregon.pmpaware.net by selecting "Create an Account." For more information, please review OAR 847-010-0120 and OAR 333-023-0825. For questions, contact the PDMP at 866-205-1222 or pdmp.health@state.or.us.
ATTENTION: The Oregon Health Authority adopted temporary rules to align with requirements in 42 U.S.C. 1396w-3a. The temporary rules require Oregon Health Plan (OHP) enrolled providers and Coordinated Care Organization (CCO) contracted providers to check the PDMP before prescribing controlled substances to covered individuals. See OAR 410-120-1260(13) and OAR 410-141-3855(15) for details.
CDC Advises Against Misapplication of the Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain
Authors of the 2016 CDC Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain are advising against misapplication of the guideline that can risk patient health and safety, raising awareness of the following issues: