Skip to main content
Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
News by Topic: Substance use and misuse

Mar 26, 2024 - Summarizes recent research investigating prescription treatment for rural residents with opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder. Finds that rural residents with dual diagnoses are unlikely to be prescribed medication to treat both disorders.
Source: HealthDay News
Mar 21, 2024 - Describes a naloxone distribution program on the Flathead Indian Reservation. Discusses their approach as a harm-reduction method for reducing overdose deaths.
Source: Char-Koosta News
Mar 19, 2024 - Highlights a rural reentry program in Kentucky for people leaving incarceration with substance use disorder. The program includes peer support who assist with needs such as housing, obtaining licenses, and other barriers to successful reentry.
Source: The Daily Yonder
Mar 15, 2024 - Discusses the methamphetamine crisis in rural America, noting the history and impact of the criminal justice system. Discusses methamphetamine in the context of other substance use crises.
Source: The Conversation
Mar 11, 2024 - Offers overview of priorities in the proposed Fiscal Year 2025 Budget for the Health Resources & Services Administration including youth mental health, maternity care deserts, access to primary care, opioid treatment and recovery, the healthcare workforce, and organ donation. Discusses rural specific needs throughout.
Source: Health Resources & Services Administration
Mar 6, 2024 - Announces nearly $50 million in new funding for the Rural Opioid Treatment and Recovery Initiative through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The funding can be used for both establishing new treatment and recovery services or expanding existing ones.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Mar 6, 2024 - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will hold a virtual public meeting of the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) on April 17-18, 2024. The CPSTF is charged with identifying community preventive programs, services, and policies that increase healthy longevity and improve quality of life while saving money. Agenda items include deliberation on systematic reviews of the literature on substance use, public health emergency preparedness and response, oral health, and social determinants of health. Registration is required.
Source: Federal Register
Mar 5, 2024 - Summarizes recent research investigating attempts to quit smoking in rural adults and factors contributing to quitting attempts. Discusses access to smoking-cessation interventions and recommended public health initiatives.
Source: University of Minnesota News and Events
Feb 27, 2024 - Commentary on the growing prenatal substance exposure crisis in West Virginia. Discusses rural specific challenges, as well as access to healthcare issues and social determinants of health measures. Cites research on infant outcomes following exposure to various substances. Highlights Project WATCH, a referral system connecting families to services in West Virginia.
Source: The Conversation
Feb 21, 2024 - Summarize a recent study finding race disparities in buprenorphine prescribing for in both rural and urban communities. Study examined 2018 prescribing data at the zip code level. Notes that the lack of medical providers for the rural minority communities is the reason for the rural disparity. Also discusses urban disparities trends and the impact these trends have on overdose mortality for various race and ethnicities.
Source: 90.5 WESA