More than 1.1 million Medicare beneficiaries had diagnosed with opioid use disorders in 2021, and more than 50,000 Pard D beneficiaries died from a drug overdose, whether prescribed or illicit drugs. Yet a new federal oversight report finds that Medicare is vastly underserving older Americans, with only 18 percent of enrollees with the diagnosis receiving recommended medical care and drug treatment. The report highlights the fact that overdoses occur among older Americans, even if the overall rate is below those of other adults and hasn’t spiked as sharply in recent years to a record 108,000 in 2021. One barrier to providing drug treatment to Medicare enrollees is access to medications such as the withdrawal drug methadone, which is not covered by Medicare Part D because it is dispensed in special clinics rather than pharmacies. Another medication that helps ease withdrawal cravings—buprenorphine—requires providers to get a special waiver from the government, limiting the number of eligible clinicians. While opioid prescribing among beneficiaries has been on a downward trend over the past few years, due in part to closer prescription monitoring, Medicare must work harder to improve access to treatment for those with opioid use disorder and to prevent overdoses with the drugs and services that work.
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Rosenthal Center for AddictIon Studies