The pandemic’s epidemic: opioid use disorder and subpar suboxone access   

The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated America’s health, taking more than 500 thousand American lives, upending the economy, and perpetuating racial health disparities. It also has worsened the country’s ongoing opioid use disorder (OUD) epidemic. In fact, in the twelve-month period ending June 2020, 83 thousand Americans died of a drug overdose, the highest ever recorded in a one-year period and 21 percent higher than the previous year. This dramatic increase in overdose deaths is mostly attributable to the synthetic opioid fentanyl.

The U.S. …

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