On Jan. 27, the Biden administration pulled back new practice guidelines previously issued by the Trump administration on Jan. 14 that would have relaxed requirements for prescribing the opioid addiction medication buprenorphine to patients.
The Jan. 14 guidelines, which were supported by the AAMC and other physician groups, would have exempted physicians from a requirement that they take an eight-hour training course to obtain an “x-waiver" from the Drug Enforcement Administration to prescribe buprenorphine [see Washington Highlights, Jan. 22]
In its announcement, the administration stated that the guidelines were issued “prematurely” but expressed its commitment to “increase access to buprenorphine, reduce overdose rates and save lives.”