FDA Unveils Opioid Action Plan

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced an action plan to combat the opioid-abuse crisis that includes expanding the use of abuse-deterrent drug formulations and requiring more post-market research on the effects of long-acting opioids. The plan also includes improving warning and safety information on immediate-release opioids and exploring ways to make naloxone, a drug used to treat opioid overdose, more accessible. On a more general level, the plan calls for reassessing “the risk-benefit approval framework for opioid use.” The FDA plan was announced by Dr. Robert C...