Impact of the Coronavirus Pandemic on Substance Use Disorder Treatment: Findings from a Survey of Specialty Providers in California.

ABSTRACT:

Background

As the coronavirus pandemic public health emergency begins to ebb in the United States, policymakers and providers need to evaluate how the addiction treatment system functioned during the public health emergency and draw lessons for future emergencies. One important question is whether the pandemic curtailed the use of addiction treatment and the extent to which telehealth was able to mitigate access barriers.

Methods

To begin to answer this question, we conducted a survey of specialty addiction treatment providers in California from June 2020 through July 2020. The survey focused specifically on provider organizations that served Medicaid beneficiaries.

Results

Of the 133 respondents, 50% reported a decrease in patients since the stay-at-home order in Mar

SUBMITTER: Henretty K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8264730 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature