Danielle Hagen, 202.365.6112
Karen Lyons, 612.777.5742
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WASHINGTON (February 23, 2015) – The Alliance to Prevent the Abuse of Medicines (the Alliance) , in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and CQ Roll Call , is convening thought leaders and lawmakers during an open discussion on the economic impact of the prescription drug abuse facing businesses and employees on Monday, February 23 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the Hall of Flags at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce .
The event will feature keynote addresses by Gov. Charlie Baker (R-MA) , Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D-VA) , Sen.
Rob Portman (R-OH) and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and attendees will learn more about abuse detection and prevention through feature presentations from Patrick Gleeson with Prime Therapeutics, Betsy Walker with
Cardinal Health and John Carnevale with Carnevale and Associates.
CQ Roll Call will host an expert panel moderated by Adriel Bettelheim , managing editor for health at CQ Roll Call , with Alex Brill , Matrix Global Advisors, Tom Coderre , SAMHSA, Sherry L. Green , Sherry L. Green and
Associates, and Kevin Sabet , Drug Policy Institute at the University of Florida College of Medicine.
Further, executives from the Alliance’s member organizations – the American Medical Association (AMA),
Cardinal Health, CVS Health, Healthcare Distribution Management Association (HDMA), Kaléo,
Millennium Health, Prime Therapeutics, and Teva Pharmaceuticals – will also engage in a dialogue about how the prescription drug supply chain is working together to develop comprehensive solutions to attacking prescription drug abuse nationwide.
Prescription drug abuse is a critical and complex public health issue, one that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control &
Prevention (CDC) reported in 2012, impacts more than 6 million Americans. While many have attempted to stem the tide of this epidemic and decrease abuse and misuse of prescription medications, approaches have often been too narrowly focused and ineffective.
In 2013, the Alliance joined together as stakeholders from across the entire domestic medicine supply chain to craft comprehensive solutions that focus on prevention, education, early intervention, monitoring, treatment and safe storage and disposal. Since its founding, the Alliance and its members have encouraged lawmakers, nonprofits, state and federal governments, and members of the media to join the discussion on how to curb prescription drug abuse.
“Prescription drug abuse is a critical issue for all Americans, our businesses and our economy – one that can only be addressed by bringing all stakeholders to the discussion to tackle this national problem. We believe with the help of our partners, and Gov. Baker and McAullife and Sens. Portman and Whitehouse, that we can raise awareness nationally and work together in a bipartisan fashion to create comprehensive solutions to this public health epidemic,” said Danielle Hagen, spokesperson for The Alliance to Prevent the Abuse of Medicines.

About The Alliance to Prevent the Abuse of Medicines
The Alliance—a non-profit partnership of key stakeholders in the prescription drug supply chain—was formed with the mission to develop and offer policy solutions aimed at addressing the issue of prescription drug abuse. The
Alliance members include the American Medical Association (AMA), Cardinal Health, CVS Health, Healthcare
Distribution Management Association (HDMA), Kaléo, Millennium Health, Prime Therapeutics, and Teva
Pharmaceuticals. To learn more, visit www.rxabusesolutions.org
.
About Prime Therapeutics
Prime Therapeutics LLC (Prime) helps people get the medicine they need to feel better and live well. Prime manages pharmacy benefits for health plans, employers, and government programs including Medicare and
Medicaid. The company processes claims and delivers medicine to members, offering clinical services for people with complex medical conditions. Headquartered in St. Paul, Minn., Prime serves more than 26 million people. It is collectively owned by 13 Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans, subsidiaries or affiliates of those plans. Prime has been recognized as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the nation. For more information, http://www.primetherapeutics.com
or follow @Prime_PBM on Twitter.
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