This is an academic paper that provides commentary on the initiative in Burlington, Vermont to decriminalize the possession of buprenorphine, written by a state attorney and the chief of police, and the plan to initiate the same legal approach in Philadelphia. Burlington had a 50% decrease in overdose deaths from 2017 to 2018, which appears to have been sustained in 2019, partly attributable to this initiative as part of a multi-pronged approach.

This initiative shows promise in reducing stigma, expanding access to a life-saving medication, and no longer criminalizing a person struggling with opioid use disorder who possesses an effective means to treat this condition.