NE governors to share data to combat opioid abuse

Five New England governors have banded together to implement a cross-border prescription drug monitoring program to help curb prescription drug abuse across the region.

The governors of Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island participated in a roundtable at Brandeis University on opioid abuse and a regional strategy to address the "doctor shopping" that individuals use to access more pharaceuticals.

limit Governor Deval Patrick today convened the New England Governors at Brandeis University for a roundtable discussion on opioid abuse and an announcement of a regional strategy to address the epidemic that has impacted families and communities across the region. Governor Patrick of Massachusetts and Governor Peter Shumlin of Vermont co-hosted the summit with Governor Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Governor Dannel Malloy of Connecticut and Governor Lincoln D. Chafee of Rhode Island attending.

“Each of the New England governors has taken strong action to combat opiate abuse in their own states, and now we are acting together as one region to take on this challenge," said Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick in a release.

"While we are aggressively working to curb opiate abuse through a series of health, public safety and prevention initiatives in Vermont, this crisis requires all of us to take action, regionally and nationally," said Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin.

The states will explore cross-border Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) data sharing and mandatory registration to help prevent prescription misuse and abuse across the region. Brandeis University’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Center of Excellence will use existing federal funding to analyze data from each state’s PMP and recommend best practices to assist with the region’s efforts.