A new economic evaluation has revealed that a neuroscience-informed, evidence-based therapy for opioid misuse and chronic pain provides $12 in cost savings for every dollar spent. The study found the treatment is between two and six times more cost-effective than other addiction treatments and could result in lifetime savings of more than $324,000 per patient.
The therapy, known as Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE), combines techniques to address addiction, emotional distress, and chronic pain simultaneously. It utilizes mindfulness skills to regulate pain and cravings, cognitive reappraisal skills to manage stress and negative emotions, and savoring techniques to help patients reconnect with naturally rewarding experiences. By restoring the brain's ability to experience healthy pleasure, the therapy aims to reduce cravings and prevent opioid misuse.
According to the research, MORE has been tested in more than 16 randomized clinical trials involving over 2,500 participants. Previous research involving 250 adults with chronic pain who were misusing prescribed opioids found the treatment reduced opioid misuse by 45%, improved pain symptoms and opioid dosing, and strengthened brain responses to positive experiences.
The economic analysis published in Value in Health found that the 12-to-1 benefit-to-cost ratio for MORE is significantly greater than other addiction treatment approaches. For comparison, the study estimated benefit-to-cost ratios for comprehensive case management at 1.8-to-1, residential treatment between 2-to-1 and 4.8-to-1, and intensive outpatient treatment at 5.1-to-1.
Eric Garland, PhD, a professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego School of Medicine and the senior author of the study, stated that reducing opioid misuse could have huge positive consequences for society by addressing drivers of overdose deaths, hospitalizations, homelessness, and economic loss. Garland expressed hope that MORE could become a central part of the standard of care in both addiction treatment settings and primary care to intervene before misuse progresses to severe addiction.
