Technology, Community are Keys to Solving Opioid Epidemic

Andrey Ostrovsky, chief medical officer and vice president, behavioral health, Solera Health

“There are about 2.5 million people addicted to opioids, but only 10 to 20 percent of them get help,” says Andrey Ostrovsky, MD, chief medical officer at Solera Health (and former CMO of Medicaid). Solera Health is an “integrated health network” that “connects patients, providers, and physicians to a network of partners who are preventing and managing chronic disease.”

Health care costs related to chronic disease and mental illness represent 90 percent of the nation’s $3.3 trillion in annual health care expenditures, according to the CDC. Ostrovsky proposes that a technology platform that facilitates connections among physicians, payers, and a vetted network of community organizations can help to stem the tide.

Ostrovsky has served as the chief medical officer of the U.S. Medicaid program and most recently led an addiction treatment center, Concerted Care Group, in Baltimore, Maryland. These positions along with other experiences have given him an understanding of the importance of treating the underlying and behavioral causes of chronic conditions to effect improvement in patients’ lives.

“My previous experience has also given me a deep insight into the policy landscape and how payment streams work, which is important when explaining to potential network partners how they will benefit from working with Solera,” explains Ostrovsky.

“Initially, we will focus on opioid use,” says Ostrovsky. “There are about 2.5 million people addicted to opioids, but only 10 to 20 percent of them get help.” He points to two barriers that patients face, and that Solera will have to overcome. “We have to de-stigmatize addiction treatment and mental health issues to make it easier for people to seek treatment and for health care providers to offer effective care.”

Read the full story now: View from the C-Suite: Andrey Ostrovsky, MD, Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Behavioral Health at Solera Health

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