Variations in national availability of waivered buprenorphine prescribers by racial and ethnic composition of zip codes.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Opioid overdose remains a public health crisis in diverse communities. Between 2019 and 2020, there was an almost 40% increase in drug fatalities primarily due to opioid analogues of both stimulants and opioids. Medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD; e.g., buprenorphine) are effective, evidence-based treatments that can be delivered in office-based primary care settings. We investigated disparities in the proportion of national prescribers who have obtained a waiver issued to prescribe MOUD by demographic characteristics.

Methods

Data for the secondary data analyses were obtained from the Drug Enforcement Administration that maintains data on waivered MOUD prescribers across the US. Proportion of waivered prescribers were examined by ZIP code, race and ethnici

SUBMITTER: Hirchak KA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9131568 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature