Addiction Specialist Says ‘We Must Use All Weapons Available to Win the War on Opioids

Berman delivers message at national conference in Washington, DC

New Brunswick, NJ – May 1, 2018 —

Jeffery A. Berman, M.D., DFASAM, a nationally recognized addiction medicine expert, told attendees at NATCON18, the annual meeting of the National Council for Behavioral Health held in Washington, DC from April 23-25, 2018 that “we must use all weapons available to win the war on opioids.”

“We must treat opioids like the enemy they are by declaring total war on them and using every available means to combat and defeat them. For too long, we have not fully deployed some of the most powerful and effective weapons in the war on opioids. If we did, we could reduce the number of overdoses and deaths that are devastating our country,” said Berman, who was invited to address leaders, practitioners, and professionals in the behavioral health and substance abuse fields gathered at the conference.

The New Jersey resident was recently awarded board certification by the American Board of Preventive Medicine in the newly recognized sub-specialty of Addiction Medicine. He is also a Distinguished Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, and has been certified since 1988.

“We need to expand our arsenal of weapons in the war on opioids,” Berman told conference attendees. He said that many of the solutions being used today are delivering good results but a comprehensive and integrated approach is needed.

Berman also underscored that evidence-based approaches such as medication assisted treatment — or MAT— should be included as part of a comprehensive and integrated strategy, such as extended-release naltrexone, methadone and buprenorphine products. These medications, in combination with psychosocial treatments, can help curb addictive cravings that can lead to opioid use, overdose, and death.

Medications for the treatment of opioid use disorders, Berman pointed out, have existed for many years. Unfortunately, government policy makers, insurers, physicians, and mental health professionals have been reluctant to fully embrace and implement these effective treatments, denying patients the full benefits of these cost-effective and life-saving measures.

Berman said that if we are fully committed to winning the war on opioids we must change this mindset and resistance to change.

“Some chemical dependency treatment facilities,” Berman noted, “are using MAT as part of a comprehensive and integrated approach to the treatment of opioid addiction.” He cited SOBA College Recovery in New Brunswick, New Jersey as an example.

“We’ve seen the effectiveness of leveraging and incorporating MAT, particularly naltrexone for extended-release, in our overall treatment strategy. There’s no question that its use has led to improved patient outcomes, fewer incidents of relapse, and better quality of recovery,” said Isaac Glasman, managing partner of SOBA College Recovery.

“America can win the war on opioids and crush the enemy that is destroying lives, families, and communities. It’s time we deploy all of the most powerful weapons in our arsenal to defeat this national scourge and secure victory,” concluded Berman.

Contact Info:
Name: Al Bottner Senior Marketing Officer
Organization: SOBA College Recovery
Address: 104 Bayard Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Phone: 973-556-7701

For more information, please visit https://www.recovery.org/

Release ID: 339310