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January 20, 2022 Policy Watch

Lowering the Barriers to Medication Treatment for People with Opioid Use Disorder

Overdose deaths have reached unprecedented levels in the U.S., despite effective medications to treat opioid use disorders (OUDs). Because the regulatory and administrative barriers to treatment are high, only about 11% of people with OUD receive effective medications, which include buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone. In response, clinicians and advocates have looked to a “low-threshold” approach […]

December 20, 2021 Research Highlights

Targeting Emergency Department Resources to Address the Opioid Epidemic

In a new study in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine, my colleagues and I estimate the number and distribution of emergency visits for opioid use disorder (OUD) across the country. We found that nearly 2/3 of all emergency visits for OUD occurred in 25% of EDs nationwide. Why is this important? Patients with OUD come to the […]

December 9, 2021 Collaborations

Improving Opioid Overdose

In the summer of 2021, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) awarded Bruce R. Schackman, CHERISH director and Saul P. Steinberg Distinguished Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine, and Natasha Martin, CHERISH Research Affiliate and associate professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of California San Diego, a scientific conference grant to provide simulation modeling […]

November 29, 2021 Profile Feature

Catching Up with Pilot Grant Recipients Ali Jalali, Austin Kilaru, and Hao Zhang

Every spring, the Center for Health Economics of Treatment Interventions for Substance Use Disorder, HCV, and HIV (CHERISH) awards competitive pilot grants to investigators interested in developing health economic research in our areas of interest, with a focus on junior investigators and trainees. Funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, CHERISH pilot grants provide these investigators […]

November 11, 2021 Research Highlights

The Impact of Recreational Cannabis Laws and Cannabis Use Disorder Among Pregnant Patients

To date, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists advises pregnant patients not to use cannabis because of the increased risks of health complications to the pregnant individual and the newborn. However, as states expand access to recreational or medical cannabis, there is growing evidence of increased cannabis use and positive perceptions of cannabis among pregnant patients. […]

October 8, 2021 Research Highlights

Ending HIV in the United States Will Require a Substantial Financial Commitment

“What will it take to end HIV in the United States?” is a pressing question posed by public health officials, researchers, and policymakers alike. Population Data & Modeling Core Director Benjamin Linas seeks to answer that question by amplifying notable results from a simulation modeling study published by researchers at Johns Hopkins. In an editorial issued in the Annals of […]

September 27, 2021 Research Highlights

Weighing the Costs and Benefits of Initiating Extended-release Injectable Naltrexone Compared to Buprenorphine-naloxone

Naltrexone and buprenorphine are two effective medications for opioid use disorder (OUD). Naltrexone, which is typically given as a monthly extended-release injection (XR-NTX), and daily oral buprenorphine, which is typically combined with naloxone (BUP-NX), are prescribed in outpatient or office-based medical settings. XR-NTX patients, however, need to complete detoxification before starting treatment. Results from a […]

August 12, 2021 Research Highlights

Patient Preferences Do Not Explain Racial Disparities in Opioid Prescribing

Why are Black patients less likely than white patients to be prescribed opioids for acute pain in the emergency department (ED)? While many theories have been put forward (ranging from racial differences in patients’ pain management preferences to providers’ false beliefs in biological differences between racial groups), the specific mechanisms underpinning these disparities are unclear. […]

August 12, 2021 Profile Feature

Intern Spotlight: Sona Fokum and Weston Lowry

This summer, Sona Fokum and Weston Lowry are interning at the Center for Health Economics of Treatment Interventions for Substance Use Disorder, HCV, and HIV (CHERISH) and expanding their research experience by working alongside CHERISH investigators and colleagues. Both Fokum and Lowry are pursuing careers in healthcare and recognize that this experience will provide foundational […]

August 10, 2021 Research Highlights

Hospitalization as a Reachable Moment for Patients with Opioid Use Disorder

Imagine a medication that reduces morbidity and mortality from a disease that affects more than two million people in the United States. The medication drastically improves quality of life for those who take it and reduces costs to the health care system. For hospitalized patients, this medication decreases the chance of being readmitted and of […]

July 27, 2021 Profile Feature

Pilot Grant Recipients Receive Funding to Examine Health Disparities Related to the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders, HCV, and HIV

Shoshana Aronowitz, PhD, MSHP, FNP-BC Follow Shoshana Aronowitz, PhD, MSHP, FNP-BC, on Twitter @shoshiaronowitz. Shoshana Aronowitz is a family nurse practitioner, community-engaged health services researcher, and assistant professor in the Department of Family and Community Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. Her research examines innovative delivery models to promote equitable access to substance […]

July 26, 2021 Research Highlights

Robust Prescription Monitoring Programs and Abrupt Discontinuation of Long-term Opioid Use

Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) are statewide databases that track controlled substances dispensed at retail pharmacies. Used by health care providers, public health officials, and other stakeholders, PDMPs have become a major tool in addressing unsafe opioid prescriptions. Robust features of PDMPs—including mandates that allow prescriber use of PDMP, data-sharing across states, and prescriber delegation of […]

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