A Call to Arms on Opioids

The healthcare sector is mobilizing to combat addiction. Executives and investors must join the fight.

About a decade ago we saw the dawning of a new era in cancer treatment—one that sparked innovation, expanded patient access and helped save countless lives. Forty years in the making, the breakthrough wasn’t entirely driven by science or technology. It had been fueled in large part by systemwide commitment to the cause, and by a fundamental shift in relationships among key players in the health system.

Now, as the US health system girds for battle with another public health crisis, the cancer breakthrough provides important lessons for the payers, providers and researchers, as well as executives, investors and policymakers who have each played critical roles in the fight against cancer. Their coordination, collaboration, ingenuity and commitment will be called upon again— this time to combat the scourge of opioid addiction.

For all of those players—but especially for the executives and investors whose leadership will be essential in the coming years—the time is now to understand what must be done, what existing efforts are worth watching and what risks lie ahead, starting with the millions of American lives that hang in the balance.