We ask authors to describe their impressions regarding the implications of their accepted work, how their findings will change practice, and what is noteworthy about the work.
Adherence to Buprenorphine Treatment Guidelines in a Medicaid Program
Jeffrey D. Baxter , Robin E. Clark , Mihail Samnaliev , Gideon Aweh , Elizabeth O’Connell
Substance Abuse
Vol. 36, Iss. 2, 2015
This is the first study to investigate the structure of buprenorphine treatment on a large scale across multiple providers and clinical practice sites. Our findings suggest there is significant variation in practice patterns, and that many patients receive care outside of the levels recommended by current treatment guidelines.
Now after more than 10 years experience with office-based buprenorphine treatment, providers and policy makers are at a crossroads. With opioid abuse and overdose rates increasing, federal agencies are weighing expanding the buprenorphine prescribing limits to try to improve access. At the same time, states and private payers are imposing restrictions on treatment without understanding the potential impact of limiting access on patients’ lives and on healthcare costs.
In order to sustain and expand this modality, it is critically important create policies that ensure buprenorphine treatment is provided in the highest quality, most cost effective manner. We hope that our findings support work on updating treatment guidelines and developing quality metrics that will encourage both providers and payers to invest further in providing high quality treatments for opioid addiction.