Less than 10% of opioid overdose patients are prescribed potentially lifesaving medications after emergency treatment

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A Michigan Medicine study found that only 7.4% of patients treated for an opioid overdose at U.S. emergency departments are prescribed naloxone, an overdose rescue drug often available under the name Narcan, within 30 days. The prescription rate for buprenorphine, a medication to treat opioid addiction, was just 8.5%. Researchers say clinicians are missing critical opportunities to save lives in the ER and during follow-up visits.