Posts Tagged ‘Ryan Westergaard’

The goal of this research is to estimate the effects of increased Medicaid availability for adults released from prison in Wisconsin on treatment access, use, and outcomes for opioid use disorder (OUD). Specifically, we will investigate the degree to which two policy changes affecting Medicaid eligibility for low-income, childless adults were associated with increased use of medication assisted treatment (MAT) by adults with opioid use disorder during the first six months after release from prison. We will create a novel longitudinal database comprised of Wisconsin Medicaid claims data, linked to administrative and correctional health systems data for a retrospectively defined cohort of adults who were incarcerated and released from a state prison between 2013-17. This will allow an in-depth analysis of the utilization of medication assisted treatment (MAT) by people diagnosed with opioid use disorder during community re-entry. This work has the potential to inform health policy nationally by documenting health gains and potential reductions in recidivism that may result from increased access to MAT through expansion of Medicaid.