Brian Clear, MD, FASAM, is a double boarded Family and Addiction Medicine Physician who has dedicated his career to the care of patients struggling with problematic opioid use. As Chief Medical Officer, he has designed and scaled Bicycle Health's telemedicine platform and continues to publish research finds that support the success of this model, ultimately working to contribute to destigmatization and improved provider understanding of effective accessible OUD care.
Dr. Clear earned his Doctor of Medicine (MD) from American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine and completed his residency at the University of Kentucky Family & Community Medicine Residency Program with a focus on global health. Before Bicycle Health, Brian served as Medical Director for the integrated treatment of opioid use disorder and primary care services with BAART Programs in San Francisco.
Expanding access to telehealth-based treatment programs that include medications for OUD, like buprenorphine or Sublocade, to patients as they leave custody can upend this cycle of incarceration through seamlessly following patients wherever they go next. The TREATS Act creates a legal pathway for this care to continue.
The new DEA ruling is doing a disservice not only to people with OUD, but to the entire medical care system—exacerbating a condition that will most likely lead to death.
At the Payer Insights sessions on Day 1 of ViVE 2024, a panel on prior authorization offered compelling insights from speakers who shared the positive developments in this area after years of mounting frustration. Speakers also shared challenges as they work with providers to figure out how policy developments and technology will work in practice.
Protectionism against (and fear of) telehealth on display from companies like Walmart and states like Alabama threaten the only effective and scalable solution to America’s opioid epidemic.