Individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) who are released from correctional settings are at high risk for overdose, infectious diseases (HIV, hepatitis C), and premature death. A key strategy to address the opioid epidemic among correctional populations is to increase access to medication for addiction treatment (MAT).

The goal of this administrative supplement to Drug Injection Surveillance and Care Enhancement for Rural Northern New England (DISCERNNE) (PI: Friedmann, DA044830), is to gain understanding of the trajectory of opioid use after release from jail for individuals who received medications for addiction treatment (MAT) while incarcerated. This study will provide post-incarceration trajectories of opioid use among justice-involved individuals and examine the association with in-jail MAT treatment, individual factors, and subsequent community-based treatment in rural Massachusetts. The primary outcome is the trajectory of post-incarceration opioid use. Other long-term outcomes of interest include HIV/HCV risk behaviors, mortality, treatment access and utilization. Findings will inform efforts to expand MAT in correctional settings, including H4725 in Massachusetts that includes the creation of a two-year pilot program amongst six correctional facilities to expand access to MAT for patients with OUD in the criminal justice system.

Study Settings: Jails/Prisons