University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy Clinical Professor Jeffrey Bratberg has played a key role in historic changes to The American Pharmacists Association\u2019s House of Delegates\u2019 policy statements on substance use. The association is now expressing support for decriminalizing the personal possession or use of illicit drugs and drug paraphernalia. <\/p>\n
This shift comes at a time when the nation\u2019s worsening overdose epidemic urgently demands changes to a punitive response that has relied on the criminal justice system and disproportionately harmed people of color and people experiencing poverty. The focus on punishment has not helped save lives or support public health and, in fact, has put more people at risk of drug-related harm.<\/p>\n
The association\u2019s updated statements affirm the potential and importance of pharmacists and pharmacies as public health professionals and venues that are accessible to individuals, families, and communities struggling with substance use throughout the U.S.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs key access points for harm reduction services like naloxone, sterile syringes, and medication for opioid use disorder, pharmacists play an essential role in addressing the overdose crisis,\u201d Bratberg said.<\/p>\n
Bratberg and colleagues recently published a study<\/a> in the New England Journal of Medicine showing that 89 percent of patients randomized to a novel pharmacy-based buprenorphine induction and maintenance arm remained in care at 30 days, as compared to 17 percent in the usual care control group. <\/p>\n The association\u2019s members have traditionally led and championed innovative efforts to expand overdose education and naloxone distribution, along with broader support of prevention of infectious disease transmission among people who use drugs, the organization wrote in a recent release on the policy statements. \u201cAPhA\u2019s support for addressing substance use as a health issue, rather than a crime, strengthens pharmacists\u2019 roles as public health professionals and is a critical step toward addressing rising overdose and hepatitis C infection rates,\u201d said Adrienne Simmons, director of programs at the National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable.<\/p>\n With this policy update, APhA has joined the ranks of the United Nations<\/a>, the American Public Health Association<\/a>, and other notable domestic and international associations in recognizing that drug use is first and foremost a matter of public health and available resources should primarily be allocated toward health interventions, not arrests and incarceration.<\/p>\n \u201cBringing humane, health-focused policies to our communities is another step toward health equity and anti-racism,\u201d said Vibhuti Arya, professor at St. John\u2019s University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, who delivered a lecture at URI last year<\/a> on health equity and structural racism. \u201cI\u2019m honored to have worked with my colleagues to bring this policy to our organization and advocate for systemic reform toward an equitable future.\u201d <\/p>\n Bratberg joined Arya and Simmons in delivering an educational session at the APhA Annual Meeting about decriminalization and harm reduction, in addition to recently publishing a commentary<\/a> on the topic. <\/p>\n