Drug for Opioid Use Disorder may Reduce Rearrest and Reconviction Chances

People with opioid use disorder in jail may have reduced chances of rearrest and reconviction when offered buprenorphine medication as per a study at the NIH/National Institute on Drug Abuse, published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence. The study revealed a 32% reduced rates of probation violations, reincarcerations, or court charges when the facility offered buprenorphine to people in jail compared to when it did not.

“A lot of data already show that offering medications for opioid use disorder to people in jail can prevent overdoses, withdrawal, and other adverse health outcomes after the individual is released,” says senior author Peter Friedmann, MD at Baystate Health.

The study aims to increase high-quality care for people with opioid misuse and opioid use disorder in justice settings by evaluating the drug impact specifically on recidivism, defined as additional probation violations, reincarcerations, or court charges.

“Studies like this provide much-needed evidence and momentum for jails and prisons to better enable the treatment, education, and support systems that individuals with an opioid use disorder need to help them recover and prevent reincarceration. Not offering treatment to people with opioid use disorder in jails and prisons can have devastating consequences, including a return to use and heighted risk of overdose and death after release,” says Nora D. Volkow, MD, NIDA Director.

Source-Medindia