US FDA Considering Opioid Mail-Back Envelope Mandate, But Industry Has Heard This Before

Sponsors would be required to furnish patients with pre-paid envelopes to mail back unused opioid medications for disposal. Comments on FDA's proposal could follow industry concerns about burden on health care system voiced when the idea was floated in 2018.

drug mailed in envelope
The FDA described two potential options for mandating pre-paid mail-back envelopes under the opioid REMS in a Federal Register notice. • Source: Shutterstock

Pre-paid mail-back envelops for opioid prescriptions have reemerged as a potential REMS requirement, which may once again trigger questions about the idea’s efficacy and the US Food and Drug Administration’s role in drug disposal.

The agency is seeking comments on applying the idea to all immediate-release, extended-release and long-acting opioid formulations used in outpatient...

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