KemPharm announced its commercial partner for APADAZ®, KVK-Tech (KVK), has entered a collaboration agreement with Sure Med Compliance (Sure Med), a mission-based organization focused on supporting physicians in combating the opioid epidemic through greater prescribing education and compliance. The program aligns APADAZ (benzhydrocodone and acetaminophen tablets, CII) with Sure Med’s Care Continuity Program® (CCP) in a new study program to generate anonymized patient outcome and utilization data that will measure the impact of switching patients from other hydrocodone/acetaminophen products to APADAZ, where appropriate. KVK and Sure Med Compliance will initially launch the program in Alabama with additional states expected to follow.
CCP is a proprietary software as a service (SaaS) platform that informs opioid prescribers of patient risks and therapy benefits in order to identify and document a patient’s suitability for opioid therapy. APADAZ is a combination of benzhydrocodone, a prodrug of hydrocodone, and acetaminophen that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is intended for the short-term (no more than 14 days) management of acute pain.
Per the collaboration agreement, Sure Med and KVK will develop a patient and provider support program to provide education to physicians, pharmacies, and patients regarding responsible opioid therapy. Participating physician groups and pharmacies will utilize Sure Med’s compliance tools to document consideration of legitimate medical purpose for opioid therapy. The program will also introduce APADAZ as a responsible alternative for opioid therapy, where appropriate, and collect utilization and patient outcome data related to the use of APADAZ as a replacement for branded and generic prescription opioid products.
“The joint effort between Sure Med Compliance, KVK Tech and KemPharm will give our doctors greater access to opioid-specific education and to the Care Continuity Program, which has been a proven tool to help mitigate the risks associated with opioid prescribing,” Dr. David Herrick, Founder of The Center for Pain, former President of the Alabama Medical Association and Sure Med’s Chief Medical Officer, said.
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“The collaboration between KVK and Sure Med is an exciting development in the ongoing commercialization efforts for APADAZ. This new collaboration represents an innovative opportunity to gather relevant data needed to assess the effectiveness of APADAZ in improving patient outcomes while also raising awareness for responsible prescription opioid administration through physician education and the use of compliance software,” said Travis C. Mickle, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of KemPharm. “By aligning APADAZ with Sure Med’s Care Continuity Program, participating physicians will gain access to a full prescribing suite that is focused on delivering the optimal course of treatment for each individual patient based on his or her specific medical needs.”
“At Sure Med Compliance, our primary objective is to support physicians by providing the tools and resources needed to fight the opioid epidemic. In pursuit of this mission, we seek to align ourselves with forward-thinking companies, such as KVK and KemPharm, that believe prescription opioids remain a valuable pain therapy when administered responsibly,” said John Bowman, Chief Executive Officer of Sure Med Compliance. “Data from this program will help determine if programs like these can lead prescribing decisions toward more responsible use of controlled substances.”