Opioid Misuse and Overdose Prevention
Opioids, both prescription painkillers and illegal drugs such as heroin and illicitly manufactured fentanyl, are responsible for most of the 52,000 deaths of Americans every year from overdose. States and localities have implemented a number of legal and regulatory interventions to address this epidemic.

Resources

Increasing Access to Opioid Agonist Treatment: An Innovative, Cross-Sector Approach

Law and Policy Pathways to Addressing the Epidemic of Drug-Related Harm

Legal Interventions to Reduce Overdose Mortality: Naloxone Access Laws

Cross-Sector Approach to Removing Legal and Policy Barriers to Opioid Agonist Treatment

Harm Reduction Laws in the United States

Naloxone Prescription Mandates

Harm Reduction Laws in Idaho

Characteristics of Statewide Naloxone Distribution Mechanisms

Increased Access to Medications for Opioid Use Disorder during the COVID-19 Epidemic and Beyond

Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in Georgia

Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in the District of Columbia

Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in Colorado

Legality of Dispensing and Administering Expired Naloxone in Illinois

Legality of Dispensing Naloxone to Minors in Pennsylvania

Legality of Dispensing Naloxone to Minors in Maryland

Harm Reduction Policy in Practice

Linking and De-identifying State-level Data Sets to Tackle the Opioid Epidemic

Naloxone Access and Overdose Good Samaritan Law in Ohio

Indian Health Service and Military Medical Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Requirements

Litigation Against Opioid Manufacturers: Lessons from the Tobacco Wars

Legal Interventions to Increase Access to Naloxone in Indiana

Overdose Reporting Requirements

Legal Interventions to Increase Access to Naloxone in Colorado

South Carolina Overdose Prevention Legislation

Drug Overdose Prevention in Pennsylvania
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Spotlight

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New Paper Takes Multi-Sector Approach in Identifying Policy Barriers and Solutions for Opioid Agonist Treatment Access

Determining Whether Federal Law Prohibits the Mailing of Naloxone
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Opioid Misuse and Overdose
Opioids
The United States remains in the grip of an unprecedented epidemic of drug-related harm. In 2017, over 70,000 Americans were killed by drug overdose, surpassing the number lost at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. Opioids, both prescription painkillers and illegal drugs such as heroin and illicitly manufactured fentanyl, are responsible for most of these deaths.
States and localities have implemented a number of legal and regulatory interventions to address this epidemic. These include the creation and strengthening of prescription monitoring programs (PMPs), drug take-back programs and initiatives to increase access to naloxone, a medication that effectively reverses opioid overdose. States are also taking measures to increase access to evidence-based substance use disorder treatment, improve prescriber training, and evaluate whether existing programs are having the desired effect.
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