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(Ivanhoe Newswire) – State Medicaid policies may be keeping many alcoholics from being treated with an inexpensive drug known to battle the condition.

Studies have shown the prescription drug naltrexone can help problem drinkers sober up – even if it is used without any counseling or other form of support. But a new study suggests many states have such restrictive drug policies alcoholics are unable to get or afford the medication.

“We know from extensive research that only about 6 percent of people diagnosed as alcohol dependent are getting medication during their treatment and about a third of those who do not get medication cite cost or insurance as the key barrier,” study author Carolyn Heinrich, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was quoted as saying. “Revising certain state policies on prescription drugs is one way to address what is clearly a need for greater access to a clinically-proven and cost-effective treatment.”

States that do the best job of putting naltrexone in the hands of problem drinkers are those that encourage the use of generic drugs and reduce drug costs for their Medicaid patients. Those that do the worst generally have managed care organizations that restrict access to pharmacy networks or limit prescriptions for Medicaid patients. Some states also refuse to cover any kind of drug to treat a substance abuse problem.

“States should be keen to quickly deal with this problem because today they are spending on average about $1 of every $7 of their revenues dealing with alcohol-related problems like child neglect and violent crime,” continues Heinrich. “Naltrexone is certainly not a cure-all, but it can be a powerful therapy, it’s relatively inexpensive and states have the policy levers at hand to increase its availability to alcohol addicts.”

Researchers at Georgetown University also contributed to the study. 

This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.

SOURCE: Men’s health Services Research, published online Nov. 19, 2007.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 20th, 2007 at 2:11 pm and is filed under Aid / Disasters, Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs, Diabetes, Health Insurance / Medical Insurance, Medical News, Pharma / Biotech Industry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.