Injury Center Announces New Research Awards

CDC Advances Research on Seat Belt Use, Prescription Drug Overdoses, and Health Systems

CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (Injury Center) announces new awards for three research cooperative agreement programs starting in fiscal year 2014:

1. Motor Vehicle Injury Prevention (RFA-CE-14-003) 2. Research to Prevent Prescription Drug Overdoses (RFA-CE-14-002) 3. Research on Integration of Injury Prevention in Health Systems (RFA-CE-14-004)

Evaluating programs that help to prevent injuries and deaths from motor vehicle crashes

The Injury Center requested applications to conduct research to prevent injuries and deaths from motor vehicle crashes by evaluating the impact of increased nighttime seat belt use enforcement on nighttime seat belt use and morbidity and mortality.

Awardee Principle Investigator – Dr. Shashi Nabisan Institution – University of Tennessee Title – Evaluation of Increased Nighttime Enforcement of Seatbelt Use
Anticipated Funding Amount – $1,199,994 over 3 years

This research will develop, implement, and evaluate a pilot program in East Tennessee which combines increased targeted, nighttime seatbelt use enforcement and broad community-based outreach and education (O&E) activities. It will focus on the 13–34 year age group. The study will inform future campaigns and guide investments across various settings at the regional and national scales so reduce preventable injuries and fatalities and their outcomes on individual and societal health and well-being.

Conducting research to prevent prescription drug overdoses

The Injury Center, in collaboration with the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), requested applications to conduct research to prevent prescription drug overdoses by either evaluating the impact of (a) legislation that requires state oversight of pain management clinics, or (b) formulary management and benefit design strategies used by public or private insurers and pharmacy benefit managers.

Awardees 
Principal Investigator – Dr. Andrew Mulcahy 
Institution – RAND Corporation
Title – The Impact of Benefit Design and Formulary Practices on Opioid Abuse and Overdose
Anticipated Funding Amount – $400,000 over 2 years

This study will address the question of whether benefit design and formulary management can be applied to address the public health problems of prescription drug abuse and overdose in two populations: workers’ compensation and SSDI-eligible disabled Medicare populations in Texas and California. It will contribute to the evidence base linking policy tools to changes in outcomes related to prescription drug abuse and overdose. This research will provide insurers and policymakers with the information needed to craft more effective strategies to reduce misuse, abuse, and overdose due to prescription drugs.

Principal Investigator – Dr. Daniel Hartung 
Institution – Oregon State University
Title – Opioid Analgesic Policies and Prescription Drug Abuse in State Medicaid Programs Anticipated Funding Amount – $397,254 over 2 years

The objective of this study is to quantify how pharmacy benefit designs in three state Medicaid programs (Oregon, Oklahoma, Colorado) impact opioid analgesic use, inappropriate use, abuse, and adverse health outcomes. Knowledge gained from this project will benefit Medicaid recipients who are more likely to have substance abuse disorders and are disproportionately represented among overdose deaths, and will inform numerous high risk populations (e.g., recently incarcerated) who will gain Medicaid coverage through the Affordable Care Act expansion in the upcoming years.

Principal Investigator – Dr. Gerald CochranInstitution – University of Pittsburgh
Title – The Influence of Formulary Management Strategies on Opioid Medication Use
Anticipated Funding Amount – $399,895 over 2 years

This study will examine the effect of formulary management strategies on patterns of problematic prescription opioid consumption and overdose in the Pennsylvania Medicaid program. It will enrich our understanding of the effects of formularies on prescription opioid use among Medicaid enrollees. Results from this study will be directly disseminated to Pennsylvania Medicaid program administrators who can implement statewide policies to slow or reduce problematic prescription opioid consumption, overdoses, and death.

Principal Investigator – Dr. Caleb Alexander 
Institution – Johns Hopkins University
Title – The Impact of Pill Mill Laws on Opioid Prescription Dispensing and Utilization
Anticipated Funding Amount – $399,813 over 2 years

The state of Florida implemented significant legislation in 2011 that systematically regulates many of the root sources of prescription drugs that are diverted, and other states, including Louisiana, Texas and Georgia, have enacted similar legislation. This study proposes a series of interrelated aims leveraging prescription claims data to rigorously evaluate the effect of state pill mill laws. This research will contribute analytic approaches to the pharmacosurveillance of prescription opioids and will yield important information regarding the effect of state laws and regulations for pain clinics on the epidemiology of prescription drug abuse.

Conducting research to explore the relationship of public health and clinical medicine in injury prevention

Injury Center requested research to inform the link between public health and clinical medicine in injury prevention by developing the evidence base for clinical preventive services in the area of prescription drug overdose.

Awardees 
Principal Investigator – Dr. Rachel Seymour 
Institution – Carolinas Medical Center
Title – Prescription Reporting with Immediate Medication Utilization Mapping
Anticipated Funding Amount – $399,416 over 2 years

The objectives of this study are to implement and assess the ability of an electronic alert to affect prescribing behavior and to reduce morbidity and mortality within a large healthcare system. The proposed research will provide evidence that immediate feedback to prescribers on prescription pain medication use will lead to a reduction in the prescription of high dose opioids, co-prescribing of opioids with other controlled substances and reduce the number of prescriptions from multiple providers. Additionally, this intervention will combat the prescription narcotic overdose epidemic by identifying and addressing high-risk patients throughout the continuum of their care.

Principal Investigator – Dr. Janette Baird 
Institution – Rhode Island Hospital
Title – Safe Opioid Prescription Practice
Anticipated Funding Amount – $397,734 over 2 years

The investigators will use a quasi-experimental design to compare the effect of adopting and implementing a Safe Opioid Prescription Practice (SOPP) protocol within a Level 1 trauma service team compared to a Level 1 trauma service team implementing standard care. Providers at both sites will complete Web-based surveys to assess baseline knowledge, attitudes, and barriers related to safe prescription practices. The findings from this study will help researchers better understand the translation of a safe opioid prescription practice and can impact best practices for patient discharge within Level 1 trauma centers.