Research Highlights

March 8, 2024 Research Highlights

Surgeons Are Closer to Predicting Which Patients Need Post-Surgery Opioids—and Which Ones Don’t

Opioids are routinely prescribed to patients after a surgery—whether they use them or not. A new study, led by LDI Senior Fellow Anish Agarwal will help tailor prescribing so patients get the right amount of opioid medications; not too little and not too much. Unused opioids are a particular problem. Opioid misuse can start when extra tablets […]

March 8, 2024 Research Highlights

Chart of the Day: Rise in Patients with Opioid Use Disorder Leaving Hospital Prematurely

LDI Senior and Associate Fellows Ashish Thakrar, Margaret (Maggie) Lowenstein, Ryan Greysen, and M. Kit Delgado found that more people with opioid use disorder are leaving the hospital prematurely (or before medically advised), compared to marginal increases for individuals admitted for other reasons. In the study, “Trends in Before Medically Advised Discharges for Patients with Opioid Use Disorder, 2016-2020,” […]

August 23, 2023 Policy Watch

Many State Medicaid Programs Still Require Prior Authorization for Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder

The opioid epidemic has been an ongoing public health crisis in the United States, claiming countless lives and devastating communities. Buprenorphine, a highly effective medication for the treatment of opioid use disorders, holds the potential to save lives. However, a significant hurdle exists in the form of prior authorization requirements, which are associated with lower access to […]

August 4, 2023 Research Highlights

Initiation of Hepatitis C Treatment Low Among Medicaid Recipients

While there are highly effective treatments for the hepatitis C virus (HCV), only 1 in 5 Medicaid enrollees diagnosed with HCV started treatment, according to a retrospective study led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell University’s Ithaca campus. The findings revealed that treatment uptake rates were even lower among people under 30, women, […]

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July 11, 2023 Research Highlights

Economic benefits of substance use disorder treatment: A systematic literature review of economic evaluation studies from 2003 to 2021

The economic burden of substance use disorder (SUD) is significant. It encompasses clinical and societal costs such as health care and social services, criminal justice resources, loss of productivity, and premature mortality, and is estimated to cost more than $700 billion per year in the United States. To understand the gravity of these economic costs, […]

February 8, 2023 Research Highlights

Budget Impact Tool for the Incorporation of Medications for Opioid Use Disorder into Jail/Prison Facilities

Despite evidence that medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), namely methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone, provided at the point of incarceration improve the well-being of the individual and the public, financial and administrative limitations in jail/prison healthcare often serve as barriers to this recommended first-line treatment for OUD. In fact, evidence indicates that more than 80% […]

November 16, 2022 Research Highlights

Addressing Statistical Issues Encountered in Conducting Prospective Economic Evaluations Alongside Clinical Trials

Conducting an economic evaluation alongside a randomized clinical trial provides valuable information for clinicians, insurers, and policy stakeholders. Integrating an economic evaluation within a trial provides researchers the opportunity to collect patient-level data at multiple time points on both cost and effectiveness outcomes, and to measure the comparative impact of treatments on these outcomes while […]

October 24, 2022 Research Highlights

A Catch-Up on Promising Efforts to Mitigate the Opioid Crisis

For the last 20 years or so, the U.S. has seen a significant increase in opioid and drug overdoses overall. And while there was a slight leveling before the pandemic, “we’ve seen huge increases since COVID-19,” said Margaret Lowenstein, an LDI Senior Fellow, addiction medicine physician, and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Perelman School of […]

October 16, 2022 Collaborations

Engaging with People with Lived Experiences in OUD Modeling Research

Drug overdose deaths continue to rise in the United States and Canada, with the risks for greater opioid use sharply increasing in Mexico. As modelers, we know simulation modeling is a valuable tool that can inform policies and interventions to prevent overdose deaths and reduce related harms including drug overdose, HIV, and hepatitis C virus […]

October 3, 2022 Research Highlights

Prevalence of HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Prescribing Among Persons with Commercial Insurance and Likely Injection Drug Use

The United States has made important strides to reduce the incidence and negative outcomes of HIV, including increasing the availability of effective treatment and prevention in the form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). While the incidence of new HIV infections fell significantly from 130,000 in 1985, progress has stalled at approximately 39,000 new infections per year […]

September 23, 2022 Research Highlights

Paying Patients Can Improve Engagement in Mental Health Treatment

Financial incentives are known to increase patient engagement in a wide range of health programs, including programs for maintaining abstinence from substances, attending vaccination and screening appointments, and increasing physical activity. However, they have rarely been used for mental health care beyond treating substance use disorders. Showing up and being involved in mental health treatment […]

August 1, 2022 Research Highlights

Cost-effectiveness of Extended-release Injectable Naltrexone among Incarcerated Persons with Opioid Use Disorder Before Release from Prison Versus After Release

Compared to the general population, individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) who are involved with the criminal-legal system have a much higher risk of a fatal overdose after release from incarceration. Yet, stigma, costs, and preferences for non-narcotic treatments in criminal-legal settings have stalled the implementation of life-saving treatment within the criminal-legal system. Extended-release naltrexone […]

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