Methadone

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released a notice of proposed rulemaking that would allow certified opioid treatment programs to begin prescribing the drug via audio-only or video-enabled telehealth. See additional information under Policy Updates below. The proposed changes come on top of recent findings by HHS of the positive impact of its revised Practice Guidelines for the Administration of Buprenorphine for Treating Opioid Use Disorder that removed two longstanding requirements for obtaining a waiver to treat up to 30 patients with buprenorphine: 1) the requirement for specific training, and 2) the need for otherwise eligible clinicians to certify their ability to provide or refer patients for counseling and other services. Rural primary care providers have obtained the DEA waiver at a lower rate than urban clinicians; decreased burden and greater flexibility in the guidelines, along with broader use of telehealth could help close that gap.

IMPORTANCE Thousands of pregnant people with opioid use disorder (OUD) enter US jails annually, yet their access to medications for OUD (MOUD) that meet the standard of care (methadone and/or buprenorphine) is unknown. OBJECTIVE To assess the availability of MOUD for the treatment of pregnant individuals with OUD in US jails.

The most effective treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD) are the three prescription medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)—methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone—that are proved to increase a patient’s treatment retention and reduce illicit use and the risk of overdose. The only facilities legally able to offer all three medications are opioid treatment programs (OTPs), a critical component of the U.S. substance use treatment system that are regulated by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), as well as state agencies, and are certified to administer any FDA-approved medication for the treatment of OUD.

This News Brief describes the need for harm reduction and treatment services in rural areas for people who use psychostimulants and how those services can be provided by the opioid treatment program

This toolkit provides correctional administrators and health care providers the information necessary to plan and implement MAT programs within jails and prisons.

Care Coordination: Navigating Individuals With OUD Through a Treatment and Recovery Continuum Presenters from the Western Region will describe two innovative care coordination strategies and models from the RCORP/Rural Health Opioid Program grantee perspective.

Pharmacists can play an important role in improving access to medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD), especially for individuals living in rural areas where health care workforce shortages are pervasive. Learn how pharmacists can provide Medication Administration Services (MAS) and establish Collaborative Practice Agreements (CPA) in coordination with one or more treating health care providers.