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Rural Health Information Hub

Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Illicit drug use

Washington State Injury and Violence Prevention Guide
Examines the burden of seven of the most common types of unintentional and intentional injuries in rural and urban areas of the state of Washington. Includes injury data, risk and protective factors, and evidence-based or promising prevention strategies for each of the seven types.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Washington State Department of Health
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Rurality is Associated with Increased Drive Times to Opioid Treatment Programs in Arizona
Research brief presenting data on drive times to reach opioid treatment programs and Federally Qualified Health Centers, comparing rural, small town, micropolitan, and metropolitan areas.
Author(s): Rachel Gildersleeve, Benjamin Brady, Bryna Koch, Doug Campos-Outcalt, Daniel Derksen
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Arizona Center for Rural Health
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State and Community Efforts to Address Stimulant Use
Explores state and community-based efforts to address stimulant misuse. Summarizes common themes and key findings that emerged from discussions with a diverse group of stakeholders. Covers program activities, funding sources, facilitators, and barriers to implementing programs to respond to stimulant use. Identifies policy options for community, state, and federal stakeholders. Includes rural references throughout.
Author(s): Rebecca L. Haffajee, Sara Heins
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organizations: HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, RAND Corporation
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From the Front Lines: COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts in Rural Communities Hit by the Opioid Epidemic
Examines the COVID-19 response, including testing, contact tracing, and vaccination efforts, of HRSA Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (RCORP) grantees. Discusses challenges related to vaccination efforts to reach rural individuals with substance use disorder/opioid use disorder and other rural residents.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: JBS International, Inc.
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Pain in the Nation: Alcohol, Drug, and Suicide Epidemics - Special Feature: COVID-19 and Trauma
Explores the effect the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent trauma it has had on rates of suicide and alcohol- and drug-induced deaths across the nation. Breaks down data by a number of indicators, such as by age, race, and rural versus urban location.
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Trust for America's Health
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Medicare-Paid Naloxone: Trends in Non-Metropolitan and Metropolitan Areas Metropolitan Areas
Policy brief examining Medicare-paid naloxone dispensing, comparing rates in non-metro and metro areas nationwide. Provides year-by-year data by payer type for 2013-2018, including insurance, Medicaid, and Medicare Part D. Compares numbers of Medicare-paid naloxone prescriptions year-to-year for retail pharmacies, comparing rate changes for rural and metro areas.
Author(s): Chris Delcher, Yue Cheng, Minji Sohn, Jeffery C. Talbert, Patricia R. Freeman
Date: 05/2021
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Underserved Health Research Center
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Telemedicine Increases Access to Buprenorphine Initiation During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Discusses the expanded access to buprenorphine prescription through telemedicine during COVID-19, comparing the experiences of two harm reduction primary care programs in a rural and urban region of New York. Discusses reduced barriers to treatment, particularly delays due to in-person evaluation requirements before to the pandemic, and innovations to opioid use disorder treatment made possible through telehealth.
Author(s): Linda Wang, Jeffrey Weiss, Elizabeth Bogel Ryan, et al.
Citation: Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 124, 108272
Date: 05/2021
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Understanding Declining Rates of Drug Overdose Mortality in Eastern Kentucky
Identifies policies and strategies that might have contributed to the decline in drug overdose mortality in the 5-year periods from 2008-2012 to 2013-2017 in 8 counties in eastern Kentucky. Offers recommendations for approaches that could be implemented in other communities. Includes statistics on overdose mortality in 8 eastern Kentucky counties; a county-level map showing changes in rates of overdose mortality in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Ohio; and a graph showing rates of overdose mortality in the Appalachian counties of Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia from 1999-2019.
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organizations: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis, University of Kentucky Center of Excellence in Rural Health
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Guide for Future Directions for the Addiction and OUD Treatment Ecosystem
Details strategies for addressing the opioid use epidemic and improving the current addiction treatment ecosystem. Breaks down the strategies by capacity, competency, consistency, and compensation. Discusses some of the barriers to treating opioid use disorder in rural areas.
Author(s): R. Corey Waller, Kelly J. Clark, Alex Woodruff, et al.
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: National Academy of Medicine
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The Opioid Epidemic: A Geography in Two Phases
Examines population and geographic data on 2 phases of the U.S. opioid epidemic. Examines the association between overdose deaths and chronic pain, physical disability rates, and economic hardship. Discusses the shift from overdose mortality associated with prescription opioids to illicit and synthetic opioids in the early 2010s, including in rural areas and the Northeastern U.S.
Additional links: Report Summary
Author(s): David A. McGranahan, Timothy S. Parker
Date: 04/2021
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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