RICHMOND, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares is joining 44 other attorneys general to urge the Drug Enforcement Administration and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to permanently extend telehealth flexibilities for prescribing buprenorphine, an opioid use disorder treatment.

According to a release from Miyares’ office, in March 2020, the DEA allowed audio-visual telemedicine services to prescribe buprenorphine. However, this condition is set to expire when the COVID-19 public health emergency ends.

Without the proposed permanent extension, the current expiration of the public health emergency could cut off an estimated 2.5 million U.S. adults who utilize the opioid use disorder treatment.

Buprenorphine is one of three medications that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat patients suffering from addiction.

Read the full letter here.

According to the release, more than 100,000 Americans died in the United States due to overdose last year alone.