What is the Geographic Distribution of the Workforce with a DEA Waiver to Prescribe Buprenorphine?
Description:
This study found that the number of clinicians with a Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) waiver to provide medication treatment for opioid use disorder (MOUD) more than doubled from December 2017 to July 2020, from 37,869 to 98,344. The availability of DEA-waivered clinicians has increased across all geographic categories. Nearly two thirds of all rural counties (63.1%) had at least one clinician with a DEA waiver but more than half of small and remote rural counties had none. There were also significant differences in access by US Census Division.
The study found that the substantial expansion in the number and types of providers who can prescribe buprenorphine, combined with the increased number of patients waivered clinicians can treat at one time, offers significant, but not fully realized, potential to curtail the OUD epidemic in rural communities.
Contact
Funder:
HRSA
Status:
Complete
Publications/Presentations
| Authors | Title | Type | Date | Documents/Media |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrilla CHA, Patterson DG | Tracking the geographic distribution and growth of clinicians with a DEA waiver to prescribe buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder | PUBLICATION | 03-18-2021 | Article |