Medication Assisted Treatment – Policy Makers and Community Leaders

This collection features resources for state and community leaders interested in implementing medication assisted treatment (MAT) programs for opioid use disorder (OUD) in their communities. It includes a 2-page summary of strategies to increase patient access to MAT, a 2017 report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that describes innovative programs developed in California, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio and Virginia, as well as an implementation guide and quality planning tool from New Hampshire. There is a report from the California Health Care Foundation that makes the case that commercial and public health plans should prioritize making MAT accessible for patients, and three reports on Medicaid and MAT, including a report on a pilot program in Newark, New Jersey that successfully eliminated prior authorization requirements for some MAT formulations while improving patient outcomes and reducing administrative burden and a provider bulletin from Virginia’s Department of Medical Assistance which describes the Commonwealth’s Medicaid policy for MAT. Finally, a report from the National Alliance for Recovery Residences on how state policy makers can help recovery residences support MAT assisted recovery.

 

Note: If you know of a resource we can include in this collection of resources about medication assisted treatment for policy makers and community leaders, please let us know by visiting our call for submissions page.

Policymakers & Community Leaders
Payers & Providers
Patients & Caregivers

State Strategies for Expanding Access to Opioid Use Disorder Medications

Source: Center for Evidence-based Policy

This 2 page guide summarizes effective strategies to increase patient access to medication assisted treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD). Strategies for state program administrators, clinicians and health systems, and individuals with OUD are presented.

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Policymakers & Community Leaders

State and Local Policy Levers for Increasing Treatment and Recovery Capacity to Address the Opioid Epidemic: Final Report

Source: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), US Department of Health and Human Services

This report provides financing strategies and workforce development strategies for state policy makers interested in expanding access to treatment for opioid use disorder, particularly medication assisted treatment.

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Payers & Providers

Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Quality Planning Tool

Source: New Hampshire Health and Human Services Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services

A companion document to New Hampshire’s guidance on creating community-based medication assisted treatment (MAT) services for opioid use disorder, this quality planning tool guides staff through the steps necessary to develop and implement an MAT program.

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Payers & Providers

Why Health Plans Should Go to the MAT in the Fight Against Opioid Addiction

Source: California Health Care Foundation

This 2017 publication from the California Health Care Foundation makes the case that commercial and public health plans should make access to medication assisted treatment (MAT) a priority for patients with opioid use disorder. The report explains why MAT is so important, defines the access barriers to MAT, and provides strategies for health plans to implement in making MAT available for their patients. Funding Source: California Health Care Foundation

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Policymakers & Community Leaders
Payers & Providers

Translating Local Innovation Into Statewide Policy: Lessons From a Medications for Addiction Treatment (MAT) Prior Authorization Pilot in Camden, New Jersey

Evidence Ranking: Promising

Source: Camden Coalition of Health Care Providers

In 2017 the Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers began a pilot in partnership with local addiction treatment providers and UnitedHealthCare to see if removing prior authorization requirements for buprenorphine would reduce barriers to treatment and improve patient and system outcomes.

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Policymakers & Community Leaders

MAT-Capable Recovery Residences: How State Policymakers Can Enhance and Expand Capacity to Adequately Support Medication Assisted Recovery

Source: National Alliance for Recovery Residences

The National Alliance for Recovery Residences published this guide to supporting the use of medication assisted treatment (MAT) in recovery housing programs in 2019. Directed at state and local policy makers, the report describes the challenges of adding MAT to recovery residence programs and proposes strategies for expanding recovery housing overall and specifically housing programs that can support residents on MAT.

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