Opioid Prescribing Work Group

The Opioid Prescribing Work Group (OPWG) is an advisory body of experts convened to forward DHS’ Opioid Prescribing Improvement Program (OPIP). The program plays a crucial role in Minnesota’s response to the crisis of prescription opioid misuse and abuse, namely addressing inappropriate prescribing behavior among Minnesota health care providers.

The Opioid Prescribing Improvement Program was created in 2015 at the direction of the governor and the Legislature, and the work group was recently extended through 2021. The work group is tasked with providing recommendations on the following program components:

Protocols that address all phases of the opioid prescribing cycle
Development of educational resources and messages for providers to use in communicating with patients about pain and the use of opioids to treat pain
Quality-improvement measures (DHS-7763) to assess variation and support improvement in clinical practice
Two thresholds directed at Minnesota Health Care Program-enrolled providers with persistently concerning prescribing practices, one threshold that will trigger quality improvement and the other termination from the Minnesota Health Care Program

Read a one-page overview of the program and prescribing guidelines.

Appointing authority: Commissioner of Human Services.
Compensation: $200 honorarium plus reimbursement for mileage and parking.
(Minnesota Statutes, section 256B.0638)

Work group members
The information in parenthesis indicates the statutorily set membership categories.
- Julie L. Cunningham, PharmD, BCPP, Mayo Clinic Health System (nonphysician health care professional who treats pain)
- Sen. Chris Eaton, RN, Minnesota State Senate (consumer representative)
- Tiffany Elton, PharmD, NCPS, Consultant (pharmacist)
- Dana Farley, MS, Minnesota Department of Health (nonvoting)
- Rebekah Forrest, RN, CNP, North Point Community Clinic (nurse practitioner)
- Ifeyinwa Nneka Igwe, MD, Essentia Health (physician)
- Bradley Johnson, MD, South Country Health Alliance (health plan medical director)
- Chris Johnson, MD, Allina Health (Health Services Advisory Council member)
- Ernest Lampe, MD, Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI medical consultant; nonvoting)
- Matthew Lewis, MD (not practicing), Winona (consumer representative)
- Pete Marshall, PharmD, HealthPartners (health plan pharmacy director)
- Murray McAllister, PsyD, LP, Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute (nonphysician health care professional who treats pain)
- Richard Nadeau, DDS, MPH, University of Minnesota School of Dentistry (dentist)
- Chad Hope, PharmD, Department of Human Services (DHS pharmacy unit; nonvoting)
- Charles Reznikoff, MD, Hennepin County Medical Center (mental health professional)
- Vacant, Minnesota Department of Human Services (Minnesota Health Care Program medical director; nonvoting)
- Detective Charles Strack, Little Falls Police Department (law enforcement)
- Lindsey Thomas, MD, Midwest Medical Examiner's Office, retired (medical examiner)
Meeting calendar and how to participate

The work group will convene in fall 2019. Upcoming meetings will be posted to the web site and announced through the work group’s email distribution list. Please email dhs.opioid@state.mn.us to be added to the list.

Next meeting: Thursday, December 19, 2019; noon – 3 p.m.

Meeting location:

  Minnesota Department of Human Services
        444 Lafayette Road N., Room 5137
        St. Paul, MN 55155

All meetings are open to the public. To attend in person, you must register in advance with staff in order to arrange for a visitor’s badge and escort to the meeting.

Live-streaming webcast: You can view a live-streaming webcast of each meeting and submit written comments or questions in real time. Submitted comments and questions will be addressed during the public comment portion of each meeting. You do not need to register in advance to view the live webcast.

View the live-streaming webcast. Note: the link will be live at approximately 11:45 a.m. on the day of the work group meeting. If the primary hyperlink does not work, a backup link is available. The webcast is best supported on Chrome and FireFox. If you experience difficulty accessing the webcast on the day of the work group meeting, please call the IT Help Desk at 651-431-2070.

Meeting agendas: See the meeting materials section below for agendas, or email staff to receive agendas and background materials via email before each meeting.

To request an accommodation: To request a reasonable accommodation to make it possible for you to attend any of the meetings or view the live webcast, please send a request as soon as possible to staff.
Meeting materials
Previous meetings

2018
2017
- Jan. 19 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- Feb. 16: Cancelled
- March 16 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- May 18 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- June 15 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
2016
- Jan 25 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- Feb. 18 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- March 17 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- April 21 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- May 19 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- June 22: Cancelled
2015
- Nov. 23 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
- Dec. 14 agenda (PDF) | meeting minutes (PDF)
Recommendations and public comments
DHS is committed to transparency and gathering public input during development of the Opioid Prescribing Improvement Program. DHS invites input from clients, stakeholders and citizens. Each of the components of the program, recommended by the Opioid Prescribing Work Group, will be posted to this web page for a period of public comment. The components include:
- Draft opioid prescribing recommendations (acute, post-acute and chronic pain) (public comment process completed)
- Recommended sentinel measures of opioid prescribing during each pain phase (completed)
- Recommended criteria for a mandatory quality improvement program
Provider reports and opioid prescribing measures

The DHS opioid prescribing reports compare an individual provider’s prescribing rates in seven opioid prescribing measures to the average rate of their specialty peer providers. The reports do not identify any individual or group peers. The purpose of the reports is to support quality improvement among providers at the local and the state level.
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