Five New England States Creating Regional Addiction Treatment Strategy

On June 17, 2014, the governors of five New England states announced plans to implement a regional addiction treatment strategy to address a regional increase in heroin and opioid-related overdoses and deaths. At a regional meeting hosted by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Vermont Governor Pete Shumlin, the governors of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont agreed to explore cross-border Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) data sharing and mandatory prescriber registration. They also agreed to explore treatment agreements between state Medicaid programs, and to develop a coordinated media campaign targeted at youth and parents about the risks . . .