AMGA and Abt Associates to Evaluate Effects of Opioid Policies and Guidelines on Pain Management Practices and Outcomes
Alexandria, VA – AMGA is collaborating with Abt Associates, who has been awarded $2.05M by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to conduct a rigorous evaluation of practice guidelines and policies for chronic pain management, opioid prescribing, and medication-assisted treatment (MAT). The three-year evaluation, called Understanding Chronic Pain Management Including Opioid Prescribing in the Context of Clinical Practice Guidelines and Policies, will analyze how practices and policies affect pain-management practices, clinician-patient communication, and patient outcomes.
In support of this evaluation, AMGA will recruit healthcare organizations from its network of more than 400 medical group and integrated health system members to participate in this project. These organizations will be targeted for recruitment based on current policies and processes in place to combat the opioid epidemic. Together with Abt, AMGA will conduct a quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the impact of practice guidelines and policies.
“In response to the opioid epidemic, lawmakers at every level, as well as public and private payers, have issued a wide variety of rules and guidance for prevention, treatment, prescribing practices, and recovery. As a result, healthcare systems across the country have pursued various initiatives to varying degrees of success,” said Elizabeth Ciemins, Ph.D, M.P.H., M.A., AMGA’s senior director of research and analytics. “This research will help us understand which policies are effective and which are not. The findings of this evaluation will be used to help AMGA members, legislative agencies, and the broader healthcare community more efficiently combat the opioid epidemic.”
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About AMGA
AMGA is a trade association leading the transformation of health care in America. Representing multispecialty medical groups and integrated systems of care, we advocate, educate, innovate, and empower our members to deliver the next level of high performance health. AMGA is the national voice promoting awareness of our members’ recognized excellence in the delivery of coordinated, high quality, high-value care. More than 175,000 physicians practice in our member organizations, delivering care to one in three Americans.