An increase of methadone-involved overdose deaths beginning in March 2020 was linked to a rise in overdose deaths from illicitly made fentanyl, not policy changes for take-home methadone, data show.
On March 16, 2020, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration allowed states to request blanket exceptions to provide up to 14- and 28-day take-home methadone treatments for those in opioid treatment programs whose access was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic
“This signaled a shift in practice because most patients historically receive methadone daily from [opioid treatment