The COVID-19 pandemic has spiked the overdose death rate from opioid use. For people who rely on medications (buprenorphine, methadone, and extended-release naltrexone) to treat opioid use disorders, the pandemic and such natural disasters as tornadoes, hurricanes, and wildfires can disrupt access to medications. New Yale-led research published April 19 in JAMA Network Open finds that the location of medication treatment services makes treatment interruption likely where those disruptions exist.
Disasters could disrupt care for opioid use disorder in most vulnerable communities
The COVID-19 pandemic has spiked the overdose death rate from opioid use. For people who rely on medications (buprenorphine, methadone, and extended-release naltrexone) to treat opioid use disorders, the pandemic and such natural disasters as tornadoes, hurricanes, and wildfires can disrupt access to medications. New Yale-led research published April 19 in JAMA Network Open finds that the location of medication treatment services makes treatment interruption likely where those disruptions exist.