Effect of alternative income assistance schedules on drug use and drug-related harm: a randomised controlled trial.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The synchronised monthly disbursement of income assistance, whereby all recipients are paid on the same day, has been associated with increases in illicit drug use and serious associated harms. This phenomenon is often referred to as the cheque effect. Because payment variability can affect consumption patterns, this study aimed to assess whether these harms could be mitigated through a structural intervention that varied income assistance payment timing and frequency.

Methods

This randomised, parallel group trial was done in Vancouver, Canada, and enrolled recipients of income assistance whose drug use increased around payment days. The recipients were randomly assigned 1:2:2 to a control group that received monthly synchronised income assistance payments on gove

SUBMITTER: Richardson L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8176782 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature