 A small but growing percentage of jails in the United States offer medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder (OUD) to individuals in custody. For many of these jails, the MAT program involves administering extended-release injectable naltrexone prior to inmates’ release to the community. A naltrexone program can be a pragmatic starting point for correctional facilities launching MAT services, because it eliminates risk of medication diversion and abuse concerns that are often associated with other U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved medications for treating OUD.
 Indians and Alaska Natives have experienced the largest increases in drug- and opioid-involved overdose mortality rates in the past 20 years as compared to other racial/ethnic groups in the United States. Some research suggests that those rates are underreported. The most frequently used evidence-based practice available to treat opioid use disorders and alcohol use disorders is medication-assisted treatment (MAT). Read about how opioid use disorders are defined and consider statistics related to opiate use by race. Learn some common myths and misconceptions surrounding MATs. The article concludes with a brief review of a number of current MAT programs in tribal communities around the country.
 A poll done by the University of Michigan's Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation asked adults ages 50 to 80 to reflect on their drinking habits shortly before the pandemic and during its first 10 months. In all, 23% of adults old than 50 who drink alcohol reported that they routinely had three or more drinks in one sitting, according to new findings from the National Poll on Healthy Aging. The study also showed 10% of adults who drink use other drugs while drinking, including marijuana or prescription medications. Those who reported feeling isolated or lonely were also more likely to say they had increased alcohol intake. Among older adults who drink, 10% said there was a time when they thought they were drinking too much during the pandemic, though few of them had sought help. Meanwhile, half of older adults say they mainly drink for social reasons. Members of this group were more likely to say they decreased their drinking in 2020. This suggests that their alcohol consumption may rise as social interactions increase during the new phase of the pandemic.
The Great Lakes Prevention Technology Transfer Center (PTTC) invites you to take a Needs Assessment survey to inform its work to develop free training, technical assistance services and other resources to support your prevention work and professional development. Your responses to this survey will help them determine what prevention related trainings and resources to include in workplans submitted to SAMHSA and how best to provide them.
“Looking for drug overdose data? State and county level data relating to drug overdose deaths, nonfatal overdoses, opioid prescribing and much more can be found on our Drug Overdose Dashboard here. Additional overdose data can be found on StatsExplorer here. Please feel free to reach out to the DOP team with any data questions.”
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