Pittsburgh-based Highmark Health is working to address the opioid epidemic with a focus on one key idea: reducing stigma.

The insurer has partnered with Shatterproof, a national group aimed at combatting addiction, to offer its employer clients a slate of virtual education tools on the stigma associated with opioid use disorder. Highmark offers plans in Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia.

Through the platform, employees with Highmark insurance can access five-minute modules that explore a variety of topics related to the opioid crisis, including risk factors, symptoms of addiction, and treatment options. It also includes success stories from people recovering from opioid addiction.

The modules are designed to be easy to understand and provide supplementary materials for people who want to learn more, including fact sheets and videos.

Caesar DeLeo, M.D., vice president and executive medical director of strategic initiatives for Highmark said that education initiatives like this are vital in combating stigma.

This partnership is the result of a 2019 community survey conducted by Highmark to gauge attitudes toward opioid addiction in the insurer's core markets.

80% of those surveyed said that opioid dependence is either mostly or somewhat the fault of the addict. Also, in each of the three markets, between 30% and 49% of survey respondents said they would be uncomfortable to learn that a co-worker had an opioid addiction.

However, more than three-quarters of the survey respondents believe they should encourage friends or family members to seek treatment if they need it. DeLeo said that highlights the impact of stigma: It prevents diagnoses.

Highmark’s core markets have also been hit hard by the opioid crisis as the survey found that, across the three states, between 34% and 57% of people said a family member or close friend had suffered from opioid addiction.

DeLeo also mentioned that digital health options like telepsychiatry can address stigma, too, for someone who’d be embarrassed to go to a therapist in person into treatment.