The Washington Pos (2/12, Cunningham) reports that “the country’s persistent battle with opioid addiction” is “ongoing and severe.” The article says that on average, Americans have “a 1 in 96 chance of dying from an opioid overdose” in their lifetime, “compared to 1-in-103 odds of perishing in a car crash.” Although “there are signs drug overdoses are declining somewhat, they still killed more than 70,000 people in 2017.” The piece adds that in New Hampshire, “overdose deaths are double the nationwide rate.”

Follow all of the ADA’s advocacy efforts, policies, and positions on opioids at ADA.org/opioids.

As a public service, the ADA Center for Professional Success website is now offering free access to information on safe prescribing, online continuing education, and other tools for managing dental pain, especially for patients who are at risk for drug overdose or addiction. For more information, visit Success. ADA.org/opioids. In addition, the Oral Health Topics on ADA.org provide information on oral analgesics for acute dental pain for dental professionals.

ADA CE Online offers the courses Safe and Responsible Prescribing of Opioid Analgesics and Pharmacotherapeutics for Dental Practitioners: Analgesics Clinical Implications, and the ADA Catalog features the book

 The ADA Practical Guide to Substance Use Disorders and Safe Prescribing.