Discussion: Impact of CARA Act on Opioid Epidemic and Healthcare

This assignment analyzes the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), focusing on its impact on the opioid epidemic and healthcare. It discusses the act's six pillars: prevention, treatment, recovery, law enforcement, criminal justice reform, and overdose reversal. The assignment references a discussion post and explores the allocation of resources, the importance of quality and access in healthcare, and the predicted outcomes of various interventions, such as increased naloxone availability, medication-assisted treatment, and psychosocial treatment. It also includes a summary of CARA 2.0, which addresses the need for additional funding and new policies to monitor the recovery and prevention programs. The assignment highlights the significance of the CARA Act in addressing the opioid crisis and improving healthcare outcomes.

Running head: COLLEAGUE RESPONSE
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1COLLEAGUE RESPONSE
Further insights
The Comprehensive Addiction & Recovery Act (CARA) has been implemented after
it was made as a law in 2016. The transforming way of treating opioid addiction has brought
about significant positive effects among population health treatments following
implementation of the CARA program. The CARA evidence-based programs have
announced additional funding for prevention of opioid abuse; however the dual agreement
suggests that additional resourceful funding needs to be granted in response to increased
health costs. President Donald Trump has highly supported this CARA program and has
announced for inclusion of additional budget for preventing opioid epidemic. Trump
Administration 2019 budget allowed an inclusion of $17 billion for combative resources of
opioid epidemic (Gross, 2017). Due to increasing health care costs, the bipartisan agreement
has allowed an additional inclusion of $6 billion within the budget for additional resources.
CARA 2.0 Act has been made to introduce by the bipartisanship of the senators which
addresses the various changes of the policy and at the same time incorporates an additional
$1 billion to increase the funding levels in response to evidence based prevention and
recovery programs (CARA 2.0, 2018). The new policy changes allow the doctors and
pharmacists to monitor the recovery and prevention programs preceding the medication
prescription. The new rules impose penalties, both civil and criminal, towards manufacturers
of opioid who do not comply with the maintenance of control standards against opioid
prevention. CARA 2.0 Act, based on the original law of CARA, provides the adequate
response to the urgent crisis of funding resources.

2COLLEAGUE RESPONSE
References
CARA 2.0, A bipartisan Senate bill takes another shot at addressing the opioid crisis (2018).
Retrieved from https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/2/27/17058830/senate-
opioid-epidemic-cara
Gross, L. (2017). The Opioid Epidemic and Rural America: Why the USDA Should Lead the
Response. Ky. J. Equine Agric. & Nat. Resources L., 10, 257.