Surgeon General Asks All Doctors for Help in Addressing Opioid Crisis

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has sent a letter to every doctor in the country, asking for their help in solving the opioid epidemic, CNN reports.

Murthy is asking all doctors to sign a pledge at TurnTheTideRx.org to educate themselves to treat pain safely and effectively; to screen patients for opioid use disorder and provide or connect them with evidence-based treatment; and to talk about and treat addiction as a chronic illness, not a moral failing.

“I know solving this problem will not be easy,” Murthy wrote. “We often struggle to balance reducing our patients’ pain with increasing their risk of opioid addiction. But, as clinicians, we have the unique power to help end this epidemic.”