Doctors say new non-opioid pain medication comes without risk of addiction
A doctor with NYU says this new pill is not addictive. A mother who lost her son from opioid addiction hopes for the best but wants to see if this new pill will truly be a safe alternative.
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A new non-opioid pain medication has been released - and doctors say it is non-addictive.
The new drug, branded "Journavx," is the first non-opioid pain pill, and it just got FDA approval.
"It's not euphoric, you don't get a high associated with it, there's no withdrawal, there's no craving, that's very important," said Dr. Christopher Gharibo, an anesthesiologist with NYU Langone specializing in pain management.
Dr. Gharibo says this medicine has been used as a local anesthetic, but this is the first time it's available as a prescribed pill.
Journavx reduces pain by targeting a pain-signaling pathway in the peripheral nervous system before pain signals reach the brain.
Dr. Gharibo says this new medication is expensive.
"If we were to compare it to what's available over the counter and other generic medications, it's substantially more expensive. The difference can be for example five cents versus $15," he said.
Carbonaro says she hopes this new pill really is non-addictive and becomes a good alternative to opioids.
"I want to be an optimist, I do. But I'm very, very, very cautious. We got to watch, got to see what's going to happen," she said.
In addition to being more expensive, Dr. Gharibo says he thinks a big barrier with this non-opioid painkiller will be the ability to get it covered by insurance.
He believes there may be an authorization process to go through with your doctor and insurance to access the drug.
