On Monday 9/16/2024, under a brilliant baking sun, from the south lawn of the state Capitol, Governor Andy Beshear proclaimed September to be Recovery Month in Kentucky. To his left and to his right sat about twelve sun-drenched dignitaries, most wearing business attire meant for air-conditioned offices.  As I stood there in the front row, myself baking in the sun, I realized two things early on: (1) I had made the right decision to come, and (2) my game time decision to wear my UofL Med School polo shirt instead of a coat and tie was the right move (Can you find me in the pic below?).

I’d never heard Governor Beshear speak in person, and I found him to be as charming, personable, likable, and relatable as he always appears to be on TV. The governor said all the right things that needed to be said. He was inspirational as he recounted the work that had been done by Kentucky’s government over the past year battling the opioid crisis in our state. He touted KY’s 9.8% drop in overdose deaths from a year ago. He also said “There is a lot of work left to do.”

Eric Friedlander, Secretary of KY’s Cabinet for Health and Family Services also spoke and said he is thankful he is working for a Governor who “believes in science.”

And Lisa Lee, Commissioner for the Dept. for Medicaid, said that we’ve made progress, but she won’t be satisfied “until all barriers to treatment are gone.”

Others eloquently spoke, bills were ceremoniously signed, a few people with lived experience offered their compelling stories to the crowd, which dwindled a bit over time as onlookers gradually receded into the few shady spots farther away from the podium. All in all, the message was very positive. And as I stood in the front row to the right of the stage, facing Representative Kim Moser, the only other person besides me wearing red in Frankfort that day, I really wanted to believe the Governor when he said in closing, “I am convinced that we can defeat this epidemic.”

After the speeches, Representative Moser visited with me, offered me some of her views, gave me a little advice, and graciously invited me to come back to Frankfort in October to testify before her colleagues. She also introduced me to Secretary Friedlander, who I chatted with briefly. And before I left the podium area I got to speak with a true KY hero, Van Ingram, Executive Director for the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy.

These were all great connections to make. I had travelled to Frankfort thinking my main objective was to meet some of the people who I’ve been emailing regularly about the urgent need for a major overhaul of KY’s outdated and harmful regulation governing how physicians prescribe buprenorphine to treat addiction. I felt that my meet-and-greet mission had been accomplished. I could now report back to my organizations (i.e., KYSAM, ASAM, AMA, KYHRC) that our concerns about the buprenorphine regulation were probably a little closer to getting heard by the people who could bring about the needed change.

What happened next was unexpected.

I walked to the far end of the road between the Capitol and the Annex Building where dozens of addiction treatment, addiction recovery, and addiction support groups had set up tents, tables, and booths. I decided to visit every group represented there. I learned what they did, how they were funded, what role they played in the orchestra of helpers throughout our state. I met some amazing people, and I am definitely going to follow up with as many as I can. We truly have some fantastic advocates and caregivers in our state. 

And maybe providence had a plan for me that day, because as I worked my way along that road from the far end to the beginning, near the humongous, beautiful, and famous floral clock on the Capitol grounds, the last group I visited was comprised of only two women. Out of respect for their privacy, I won’t go into specifics. But suffice it to say, these two amazing individuals were living fulfilling lives in recovery from opioid addiction, both were being treated with buprenorphine, and both told me that treatment with buprenorphine had literally saved each of their lives. 

With this as my send off, I left the Capitol a little more sunburned but tremendously more inspired. It’s clear, there are a lot of wonderful people in our state doing fantastic things to help people with addiction make it to their promised land of recovery. And I’m  more determined than ever to prove myself worthy of inclusion amongst the ranks of these dedicated and compassionate healers, by virtue of my doctoring, my advocacy, and my caring. 

If you’ve read all the way down to this point in my article, then you are likely one of those wonderful people I mentioned in the paragraph above – because I know my writing is nowhere near as compelling as the cause. And you’re probably a person who wants to make a difference – maybe even save a life in the process. If so, then I have an ask of you…

Please help me get the message to our Governor that Kentucky’s outdated buprenorphine regulation needs to be gone. The science, the data, and the lived experience of thousands in recovery confirm that buprenorphine treatment for opioid addiction promotes recovery, prevents overdoses, and saves lives. I made some handouts that I gave to people at the Recovery Month event on the Capitol lawn. Below you will find screen shots of the handouts. 

As I said to one nice young lady, who politely told me that because she was employed by the state there was no way she could advocate for changing a state regulation, “That’s all right. I’m just asking that you read it.”

“Why?” she asked.

“Because, once you read it, you can’t un-read it.”

So, now I humbly ask you to please read the information below. And if you want to help remove a significant barrier to people with addiction receiving the most effective treatment we have to prevent overdoses and promote recovery, then stoke your creativity, ingenuity, determination, and problem-solving skills and help me find a way to get this information to Governor Beshear.

As Secretary Friedlander said, our Governor believes science. 

Once he reads this, he can’t un-read it.

And he will know what to do.

Your grateful colleague,

James Patrick Murphy, MD