Ontario’s medical regulatory body has approved significant modifications to the prescription guidelines for safer supply drugs in a bid to decrease the flow of opioids into the illicit drug market. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario is set to enact various adjustments regarding the prescribing of safer supply drugs. These medications are provided to individuals at high risk of overdose as a substitute for illegal opioids.
Physicians will now be required to prescribe safer supply medications in conjunction with opioid agonist therapy, utilizing medications like Suboxone and methadone to address opioid dependency. Hydromorphone, a potent opioid commonly used for pain management, but less potent than fentanyl and its analogs prevalent in the illegal drug trade, is the most frequently utilized form of safer supply.
Under the new guidelines, patients must consume the safer supply medications under the supervision of healthcare professionals rather than taking them home. Notably, the college has decided against implementing an earlier proposed eight-week restriction on the duration of safer supply prescriptions.