December 10, 2018 Helene Langevin, M.D.,Director David Shurtleff, Ph.D.,Deputy Director NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins stated today that theNIH HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-termSM) Initiativeis taking an all-hands-on deck approach to the national opioid crisis, requiring almost every NIH IC to attack the problem from all angles. The nations opioid crisis claims the lives of over 115 Americans every daywith 46 of those deaths attributed to prescription opioids. We at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) seek to address a contributing cause of this epidemicreliance on opioids for chronic pain management. The high prevalence of acute and chronic pain is a contributor to the initiation and long-term use of opioids. New treatment options for acute and chronic pain are needed to reduce exposure to the risks associated with opioiduse. Through the NIH HEAL Initiative, more than $850 million will be awarded in fiscal year 2019, bolstering existing research in the areas of addiction, pain, complementary medicine, and more to accelerate scientific solutions to the national opioid crisis. In fact, NIH published more than 30new targeted funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) under the HEAL Initiative on December 10, 2018, to solicit the best and brightest research ideas to address the national opioidcrisis. NCCIH is proud to be an active participant in the NIH HEAL Initiative, particularly focusing on nondrug approaches for pain management and the treatment of opioid use disorders (OUD). These research interests are captured inNIHs HEAL scientific research plan, which includes research priorities reflecting urgent unmet needs across the lifespan, areas of promising scientific opportunity, and concrete strategies capable of providing rapid and durable solutions to the opioid crisis. NCCIHs scientific focus is specifically aligned with two key areas in the HEAL research plan Improving Prevention and Treatment for Opioid Misuse and Addiction, and Enhancing PainManagement. |