The DEA has said will consider the more than 2,900 public comments as the agency drafts final regulations. In its proposed rule, the agency argues doctors also can order tests such as drug and toxicology screens and check for infectious diseases such as hepatitis. The DEA, which regulates controlled substances such as buprenorphine, said the in-person visit is a necessary compromise that would allow people to still get the medication from a telehealth provider while reducing the likelihood buprenorphine is diverted for illicit purposes.

Since 2020, the federal government allowed telehealth providers to prescribe the medication without a medical visit to ensure people could still get it during lockdowns and reduce exposure to COVID. The proposal could change how more than 1 million Americans recovering from addiction can access this opioid-substitute medicine, used to stop cravings and block withdrawal symptoms for opioid-use disorder. With the public health emergency set to end May 11, the Drug Enforcement Administration proposal would require people to visit a doctor or clinic within 30 days of getting a telehealth prescription for buprenorphine. Doctors and advocates are concerned a federal proposal to roll back a pandemic policy allowing remote prescribing of a common opioid substitute medicine could jeopardize those recovering from addiction.

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