WASHINGTON — As Connecticut and the nation continue to be ravaged by the growing opioid and heroin addiction epidemic, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Wednesday applauded a new mobile app MATx produced by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to assist doctors with medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction. MATx will help doctors provide effective treatment for opioid addiction with resources such as a buprenorphine prescribing guide. The mobile app will also allow doctors to find training sessions for buprenorphine prescribing and locate other providers via a map function to better assist patients in need.

“The reality is too many Connecticut families who have been torn apart by addiction don’t know where to turn for help. This new mobile app MATx is a step in the right direction, and I urge doctors across Connecticut to download it as soon as possible,” said Murphy.

According to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Connecticut, 723 people died as a result of a drug overdose in Connecticut last year – double the number of deaths as a result of a drug overdose in 2012. Murphy, a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, has called on Congress to pass his bipartisan Mental Health Reform Act, which will expand federal resources and improve coordination for mental health and substance abuse treatment programs. 

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