HARM REDUCTION WORKS –
Sept. 12, 2025 – County jail inmates who receive medication to treat their opioid addiction have a lower risk of overdose after their release. “These findings demonstrate the importance of providing medications to treat opioid use disorder in correctional settings,” Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said.
“Offering effective opioid treatment to people in jail is a critical step toward addressing the opioid crisis, promoting recovery, saving lives and reducing reincarceration,” added Volkow, whose agency funded the research. “It’s a win-win for public health.”
The opioid epidemic contributed to more than 80,000 deaths in 2024, and there tends to be a higher proportion of people with opioid abuse disorder in jail compared to the general population, researchers said in background notes.
Medications like buprenorphine, methadone and naltrexone are known to be effective in helping people break their opioid addiction, but they are available in only about 13% of U.S. jails, researchers said.
