U.S. flag

An official website of the Department of Health & Human Services

AHRQ: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Substance Use Tools & Resources   

Read the Guide

This collection of tools and resources is for providers, staff, and patients who offer or use services to address substance use, and other interested stakeholders. This collection was originally established following an environmental scan on implementing medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder (OUD) in rural primary care. (See PDFs of Volume 1 (PDF - 609 KB) and Volume 2 (PDF - 1.3 MB) of that scan). Items have been continuously added to this collection since then, and the collection has expanded to cover substance use more broadly, rather than just MAT for OUD.

Displaying 11 - 20 of 992

Peer Recovery Support Services Policy Landscape and Analysis (PDF - 1,930 KB KB)

This document provides a policy landscape and analysis of Peer Recovery Support Services (PRSS), offering an overview of how states are defining, certifying, financing, and integrating the peer support workforce while also identifying policy gaps and opportunities for strengthening services.
Format
Report/Paper/Issue Brief
Audience
Policymakers and Payers
States
Source
National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Year
Resource Type
PDF

Problems Initiating Buprenorphine Treatment Among Patients Using Fentanyl (PDF - 6.7 MB KB)

This webinar presents findings from a study on clinician‑reported challenges in initiating buprenorphine for people using fentanyl—such as precipitated withdrawal, perceived ineffectiveness, and patient preference for methadone—and discusses how clinicians are modifying induction protocols in response
Format
Webinar/Video
Audience
Medical Providers
Behavioral Health Providers
Source
Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) Network
Year
Resource Type
PDF

Reaching YAY Where They Are: Substance Use Prevention and Treatment

This training equips clinicians and allied professionals with evidence‑based strategies to prevent, identify, and address substance use among adolescents and young adults using current trends, validated screening tools like CRAFFT, and motivational interviewing techniques.
Format
Webinar/Video
Audience
Behavioral Health Providers
Other Team Members
Medical Providers
Source
Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) Network
Year
Resource Type
Video

Sentinel Site Reports

This page provides monthly and archived Sentinel Site Reports from the National Drug Early Warning System (NDEWS), summarizing local drug‑use trends, emerging substances, overdose patterns, and other surveillance findings from communities across the U.S.
Format
Web Page
Audience
Medical Providers
Behavioral Health Providers
Other Team Members
Policymakers and Payers
States
Communities
Source
National Drug Early Warning System (NDEWS)
Year
Resource Type
Web Page

Substance Use Disorder Treatment Legislation Database

This database tracks legislation related to treatment for substance use disorders, particularly opioid use disorder. 
Format
Web Page
Audience
Policymakers and Payers
Communities
States
Source
National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)
Year
Resource Type
Web Page

2025 AMA Report on Substance Use and Treatment: Progress, Policy and Future Directions (PDF - 6.6 MB KB)

This report presents data on substance use and treatment. It identifies existing gaps in pain care, treatment for opioid use disorder, naloxone, and emerging threats such as polysubstance use and cannabis use disorder. Though, opioid-related deaths have dropped recently, the report concludes that the opioid epidemic is evolving faster than our systems are.
Format
Report/Paper/Issue Brief
Audience
Medical Providers
Behavioral Health Providers
Other Team Members
Source
American Medical Association (AMA)
Year
Resource Type
PDF

2025 National Guidelines for a Behavioral Health Coordinated System of Crisis Care (PDF - 1.6 MB KB)

This new publication provides guidance and highlight effective practices for crisis care services across the country. SAMHSA has identified the essential elements for an effective crisis continuum such that everyone in the nation has a robust system that meets their needs, one that includes “someone to contact, someone to respond, and a safe place for help.”

Format
Guide
Audience
Behavioral Health Providers
Medical Providers
Other Team Members
Policymakers and Payers
Source
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
Year
Resource Type
PDF

Behind the Numbers: Making Sense of Trends in the Drug Supply and Overdose Rates

This webinar recording explores why novel psychoactive substances and new markets have emerged in recent years and breaks down recent overdose data trends and gaps.
Format
Webinar/Video
Audience
States
Policymakers and Payers
Medical Providers
Behavioral Health Providers
Communities
Source
Overdose Prevention Network
Year
Resource Type
Web Page

Blueprint for a National Prevention Infrastructure for Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Disorders

This interactive resource highlights findings from the 2025 report, Blueprint for a National Prevention Infrastructure for Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Disorders and includes actionable recommendations for various audiences.
Format
Web Page
Audience
Communities
Policymakers and Payers
Graduate Education
Behavioral Health Providers
Medical Providers
Source
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Year
Resource Type
Web Page

Buprenorphine Self-Start (PDF - 3.4 MB KB)

This document provides patient‑friendly guidance for starting buprenorphine outside of traditional clinical settings, offering multilingual self‑start instructions.
Format
Fact Sheet/Brochure
Audience
Medical Providers
Behavioral Health Providers
Patients
Communities
Source
CA Bridge
Year
Resource Type
PDF