More than one-in-five patients seeking treatment for chronic pain are prescribed opioids at their initial visit, contributing to an opioid epidemic that already affects 9.2 million Americans
BOSTON, Oct. 09, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bicycle Health, the nation’s largest provider of telemedicine treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD), announced plans to work with Override Health, a virtual chronic pain management clinic. The collaboration will allow Bicycle Health patients to discuss chronic pain management and connect them to pain management specialists across pain medicine, physical therapy, psychology, and pain coaching from Override Health. By that same measure, Override Health specialists who suspect pain patients may be struggling with OUD will have the option to refer those patients to Bicycle Health for evaluation.
Override Health’s Innovative Virtual Pain Management Model
Override Health offers non-opioid chronic pain solutions. It combines a team-based approach to care, digital engagement through a mobile app, pain neuroscience education to teach the patient about chronic pain, the brain, and the nervous system, and the creation of individualized treatment plans to better manage and control pain. Override Health often treats patients who have not found success through traditional pain management methods like physical therapy, pain medications, and surgery.
Bicycle Health's MOUD Treatment Program
Medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) treatment is the gold standard of care for people with opioid use disorder (OUD). Bicycle Health's comprehensive approach to virtual MOUD treatment combines a full-time clinical staff and wraparound support services, delivering superior outcomes at significantly lower costs than other programs. Bicycle Health patients stay in treatment past 90 days at a rate that is nearly double the industry average (80% vs. 44%). Additionally, Bicycle Health's remote urine drug screening (UDS) program has a falsification rate of less than 3%, compared to published norms of 5 to 18% for in-person treatment programs.
In-person OUD treatment programs, which serve only 10% of the population and are typically designed for the most severely affected, are not being accessed by the majority of those with OUD (less than 14% are in treatment)—either due to conflicting obligations or a perception that the program isn't intended for them.
Patient Insights: Bicycle Health and Override Health
Many of Override Health's patients who receive virtual support for chronic pain fall into the same care gaps that Bicycle Health's patients do. Patients in virtual treatment programs often live in rural areas with no nearby treatment providers. Those who don’t live in remote locations struggle to attend appointments due to time constraints, difficulty finding specialists, or stigma associated with accessing chronic pain or OUD treatment. Beyond increasing access, virtual treatment programs can also allow specialists to build more effective relationships with patients as it allows providers to see into their homes, meet their families, and to be more accommodating of patient schedule constraints like work obligations.
"The increase in opioid-related fatalities over the past five years is staggering, and the way that our medical system historically addressed pain has been a contributor. We find that more than half (56%) of potential enrollees at our program report first developing a problem with opioid use through a legitimate prescription," said Dr. Brian Clear, Chief Medical Officer at Bicycle Health.
Bicycle Health patients can receive prescriptions for either oral or extended release injectable formulations of buprenorphine, an FDA-approved partial opioid agonist that has been supported to reduce drug overdoses, ER visits, and overall healthcare costs. People with OUD can be seen, diagnosed, prescribed medication, and engage in ongoing treatment from a Bicycle Health addiction medicine specialist, all remotely.
“When we speak with leadership at major health insurance plans, one of the first questions they ask is typically about how Override Health addresses opioid use. The data analytics they use to evaluate Override Health's potential impact is frequently related to opioid users with chronic pain within their population. So this partnership makes a lot of sense,” said David Shulkin MD, Co-Founder of Override Health and the 9th Secretary of the US Department of Veterans Affairs.
“As chronic pain specialists, Override Health can help patients develop alternative pain management strategies to opioid use, but we still need help addressing OUD within this patient population. By working with Bicycle Health, we can design care programs that better address opioid use and chronic pain,” said Jennie Shulkin JD, Co-Founder and CEO of Override Health.
Learn more about Override Health’s comprehensive pain program here. For more information on how Bicycle Health can help patients struggling with OUD, check out bicyclehealth.com.
About Bicycle Health
Bicycle Health is America’s #1 telehealth provider of medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), offering an evidence-based clinical care model that includes FDA-approved Medications for Addiction Treatment (MAT), access to a highly-trained team of medical experts, therapy, a customized treatment plan, and peer support groups. Bicycle Health’s mission is to address the country’s most severe public health crisis by providing access to affordable, convenient, and confidential tele-MOUD treatment for individuals in need and helping to reduce stigmas associated with opioid addiction. For more information, visit www.bicyclehealth.com.
About Override Health
Extending his experience with the US Department of Veteran Affairs’ Whole Health program – which has demonstrated great success in decreasing opioid use and improving chronic pain outcomes – David Shulkin MD, alongside his daughter, Jennie Shulkin, founded Override Health to deliver an integrated program of virtual interdisciplinary care, neuroplasticity-centered coaching, and peer support to help individuals with chronic pain to navigate the morass of disconnected and siloed offerings in traditional pain care. The digital health company takes the burden off the patient by recruiting chronic pain specialists in pain medicine, physical therapy, psychology, and coaching to work with the patient individually and collaborate as a team. Override Health strives to transform patients from passive, dependent cure-seekers into active managers of their own pain – leading to improved pain experiences, lower medication dependencies, and lower costs of care.
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