TY - JOUR
KW - Betacoronavirus
KW - COVID-19
KW - Coronavirus Infections/epidemiology/prevention & control
KW - Health Services Accessibility/organization & administration
KW - Humans
KW - Infection Control/organization & administration
KW - Narcotic Antagonists/therapeutic use
KW - Opiate Substitution Treatment/methods
KW - Opioid-Related Disorders/drug therapy/epidemiology/psychology
KW - Organizational Innovation
KW - Pandemics/prevention & control
KW - Pneumonia, Viral/epidemiology/prevention & control
KW - SARS-CoV-2
KW - Telemedicine/methods/organization & administration
KW - United States
AU - E. A. Samuels
AU - S. A. Clark
AU - C. Wunsch
AU - L. A. Jordison Keeler
AU - N. Reddy
AU - R. Vanjani
AU - R. S. Wightman
A1 - 
AB - : During the COVID-19 pandemic, many addiction treatment and harm reduction organizations have had to reduce their hours and services for people with substance use disorders, placing these individuals at increased risk of death. In order to address restricted treatment access during COVID-19, guidance from the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration, the US Drug Enforcement Administration, and the US Department of Health and Human Services has allowed for use of audio-only telehealth encounters for buprenorphine induction without requiring an in-person evaluation or video interface. This has enabled innovations in order to try to meet the needs of the most vulnerable among us during the current pandemic. In this new regulatory environment, we established the Rhode Island Buprenorphine Hotline, a phone hotline which functions as a "tele-bridge" clinic where people with moderate to severe opioid use disorder can be linked with a DATA 2000 waivered provider who can provide an initial assessment and, if appropriate, prescribe buprenorphine for unobserved induction and linkage to outpatient treatment. In this correspondence we briefly share our experience developing this common sense approach to addressing the complex problem of access to treatment only now permissible due to regulatory changes during COVID-19.
AD - Department of Emergency Medicine, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI (EAS, LAJK, RSW); Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI (SAC); Department of Medicine, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI (CW, RV); The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI (NR).
BT - Journal of addiction medicine
C5 - Education & Workforce; Healthcare Disparities; HIT & Telehealth; Opioids & Substance Use
CP - 4
DO - 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000685
IS - 4
JF - Journal of addiction medicine
LA - eng
M1 - Journal Article
N2 - : During the COVID-19 pandemic, many addiction treatment and harm reduction organizations have had to reduce their hours and services for people with substance use disorders, placing these individuals at increased risk of death. In order to address restricted treatment access during COVID-19, guidance from the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration, the US Drug Enforcement Administration, and the US Department of Health and Human Services has allowed for use of audio-only telehealth encounters for buprenorphine induction without requiring an in-person evaluation or video interface. This has enabled innovations in order to try to meet the needs of the most vulnerable among us during the current pandemic. In this new regulatory environment, we established the Rhode Island Buprenorphine Hotline, a phone hotline which functions as a "tele-bridge" clinic where people with moderate to severe opioid use disorder can be linked with a DATA 2000 waivered provider who can provide an initial assessment and, if appropriate, prescribe buprenorphine for unobserved induction and linkage to outpatient treatment. In this correspondence we briefly share our experience developing this common sense approach to addressing the complex problem of access to treatment only now permissible due to regulatory changes during COVID-19.
PY - 2020
SN - 1935-3227; 1932-0620; 1932-0620
SP - e8
EP - e9
EP - 
T1 - Innovation During COVID-19: Improving Addiction Treatment Access
T2 - Journal of addiction medicine
TI - Innovation During COVID-19: Improving Addiction Treatment Access
U1 - Education & Workforce; Healthcare Disparities; HIT & Telehealth; Opioids & Substance Use
U2 - 32404652
U3 - 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000685
VL - 14
VO - 1935-3227; 1932-0620; 1932-0620
Y1 - 2020
Y2 - Jul/Aug
ER -