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environment and will require specific incentives for the pharmaceutical industry to collaborate (30, 32). Abuse-deterrent formulations are used in less than three percent of the cases, most likely due to their high price. Pharmaceutical companies might be reluctant to invest in developing them, when payers are not incentivized to cover such medication. PPPs, driven by the industry as they carry the burden for this crisis, should develop assisted funding systems for developing alternative drugs.Investigating how to improve and speed up the regulatory system as well as pricing and reimbursement policies, is hence another key approach to collaborate with each other.The opioid crisis is of complicated and multifaceted nature that calls for urgent collaborative action. An interdisciplinary approach is needed by engaging several disciplines. Various types of PPPs should be set up to focus on research, training, and education. The research PPPs encompass early-phase research developing tools, technologies, and platforms to accelerate the drug development process, as well as the more competitive task of developing new pain medication and also defining the strategies, medication, and behavioral practices to treat opioid use disorders. Training and education partnerships aim to educate the various healthcare actors involved to implement these strategies and best practices in the healthcare system (32). The role of participation of patients, both those addicted due to physical and psychological pain, therein is pivotal.PPPs are a tool, not an objective per se. The key stakeholders involved, each with their accompanying expertise, resources, and experiences are essential to implement the changes needed to tackle this public health crisis. Not one actor is solely responsible for all aspects of this opioid crisis, however, the classical roles of the various actors, such as the pharmaceutical industry, the nonprofit sector, academia, and the government needs to be reviewed with respect to the challenges faced (24). Successful collaborations are built upon trust, clear rules and agreements on the mission, the project objectives, the responsibilities of the different stakeholders, and a good definition of the key performance indicators that will be used to measure the PPP's success (24, 35). All need to work cooperatively to protect the public interest.Regardless of promising outcomes of PPPs, the National Institute of Health (NIH) must remain critical and take ethical considerations into account when accepting any sort of support from companies of the e.g., pharmaceutical sector, since they have contributed to a large extent to the opioid crisis (14, 36).It can be concluded that despite novel approaches and alternate formulations being developed to address the opioid addiction, more resources are needed and the urgent situation of the opioid crisis in the USA calls for more attention (32). COVERAGE CMS coverage policies now ensure some form of medicationassisted treatment across all CMS programs—Medicare, Medicaid, and Exchanges. AWARENESS CMS sent 24,000 letters in 2017 and 2018 to Medicare physicians to highlight that they were prescribing higher levels of opioids than their peers to incentivize safe prescribing practices. CMS released data to show where Medicare and Medicaid opioid prescribing is high to help identify areas for additional interventions. DATA Due to safe prescribing policies, the number of Medicare beneficiaries receiving higher than recommended doses from multiple doctors declined by 40% in 2017. TRACKING CMS activated over 4,000 hospitals, 120,000 clinicians, and 5,000 outpatient settings through national quality improvement networks to rapidly generate results in reducing opioid-related events. BEST PRACTICES As of September 2019, CMS approved 27 state Medicaid 1115 demonstrations to improve access to opioid use disorder treatment, including new flexibility to cover inpatient and residential treatment. ACCESS MOVING FORWARD PREVENTION Significant progress has been made in identifying inappropriate prescribing patterns TREATMENT Medicare, Medicaid, and private health plans provide some coverage for pain and opioid