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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Jan 12.
Published in final edited form as: J Am Board Fam Med. 2017 Jan-Feb;30(1):44–51. doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2017.01.160183

Table 1.

Primary Care Clinic Characteristics and Examples of Opioid Improvement Efforts

State Clinic Type Location Payer Mix Example Opioid Improvement Building Block(s)
PA FQHC, nurse-led Urban 4% Medicare Chronic pain group therapy 4,5
58% Medicaid
14% commercial
23% uninsured
WV FQHC, AHEC Rural 17% Medicare Chronic pain group visits 1,2,3
25% Medicaid Pain registry
22% commercial Chronic opioid prescribing policy
  and pathway
30% uninsured
SC FQHC Rural 32% Medicaid Standard care plans 2,3,4
12% Medicare Patient agreements
15% Other In house physical therapy
40% uninsured Suboxone
OR FQHC, residency Urban 20% Medicare Chronic pain group visit 2,3,4
50% Medicaid In-house CAM therapy
0% commercial Revised policies
30% uninsured Random urine drug tests
Patient agreements
Suboxone
28-day refills
NH MMG Rural 45% Medicare Patient agreements 2,5
2% Medicaid Opioid QI team
50% commercial Revised policies
3% uninsured
WA MMG Rural, Suburban 20% Medicare Chronic pain re-design team 2,4
9% Medicaid Suboxone
61.5% commercial Pain registry
9.5% uninsured Patient agreements
Random urine drug screens
Workflow for refills
MA MMG Suburban 23% Medicare Patient agreements 2,3,4
5% Medicaid Revised clinic policies
70% commercial Suboxone
2% uninsured Chronic pain group visits
Random urine drug screens
NM FQHC Frontier/ Rural 28% Medicaid Chronic pain group visits 3,4
30% commercial Behavioral health integration on
  teams
19% Medicare Mental health “first aid” training
  for staff
17% Sliding Fee Suboxone
6% self pay
CO FQHC Rural 47% Sliding Scale Revised policies 2
17% Medicaid Routine PDMP check with refills
15% Medicare Patient agreements
18% commercial dental No refills on Fridays
ME MMG Suburban 35% Medicare Registry with chronic pain
  manager
2,3,4
4.4% Medicaid
45% commercial Chronic pain group visits
5.4% uninsured Revised policies
CO MMG Urban, Suburban,
  Frontier/ Rural
20% Medicare Patient agreements 2,3,4
21% Medicaid Pre-visit preparation in daily huddle
50% commercial Random urine drug test
9% self-pay Track PEG scores and PHQ-9
Suboxone
OH FQHC Urban 50% Medicaid Random urine drug test 2,3,4
20% uninsured State PDMP check with refills
20% commercial Clinic refill policies
10% Medicare
PA PVT Suburban 90% commercial Patient agreements 2
8% Medicare Revised policies
1% uninsured
1% Medicaid
ME FQHC, residency Suburban 26% Medicare Provider support and learning group 2,4
25% Medicaid
40% commercial Suboxone
9% uninsured Revised policies
WA MMG, residency Suburban 10% Medicare Chronic pain registry with dedicated
  MA registry manager
1,2,3,4
50% Medicaid Revised policies
30% commercial Patient agreement
10% uninsured Nurse intake for new patients on
  opioids
Random urine drug test
State PDMP check
PEG scores
Referral for high risk
WI MMG Rural 17.7% Medicare Patient agreement 2
5.5% Medicare Revised refill policies
73.8%
  commercial
3% uninsured
MA CHC (hospital
  network)
Urban 40% Public Physical therapy assistant 2,4
40% uninsured Chronic pain group visits led by
  social worker
20% private
DC FQHC Urban 63% Medicaid Chronic pain group visits 4
6% Medicare Massage therapy
20% DC
  Alliance
6% commercial
5% uninsured
NY AHC, residency Urban 10% Medicare Revised clinic policies 2,4
50% Medicaid Patient agreements
30% commercial Behavioral Health Social Worker
8% uninsured
CA FQHC Rural 50% Medicaid Chronic pain group visits 2,3,4
17% Medicare Revised clinic policies
3% commercial Pre-visit planning in daily huddle
28% uninsured Patient agreements

Abbreviations: AHC, Academic Health Center; AHEC, Area Health Education Center; FQHC, Federally Qualified Health Center; MMG, Multi-specialty Medical Group or part of large system; PVT, Private Practice; RHC, Rural Health Centerl THC, Teaching Health Center.