This toolkit is aimed towards local and state health departments and community partners who are exploring opportunities to implement or enhance peer support services within overdose response and linkage to care initiatives. It provides information, resources, tools, actionable steps, and examples formed by research and experiences varying from across the country. 

This paper describes a modeling study done to estimate the impact of two dose naloxone kits on reduction of opioid overdose mortality. The authors concluded that the need for naloxone distribution expansion in almost every state researched is high, and that community based programs and pharmacy access points should be emphasized to decrease opioid overdose mortality. 

This is an academic paper that provides commentary on how stigma stymies progress across the entire continuum of care - prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery. Federal and state initiatives to alleviate stigma are discussed. 

This academic paper explores which interventions provided by problem solving courts and correctional facilities in the state of Indiana impact mortality and morbidity. The problem solving court, also known as a drug court, is an example of an intervention that refers individuals to treatment rather than incarceration. The authors found that the adoption of these diversion interventions was associated with lower rates of opioid-related morbidity and mortality. 

This is a chapter from the book Pain Management and the Opioid Epidemic: Balancing Societal and Individual Benefits and Risks of Prescription Opioid Use that provides an extensive overview of the evidence on a wide array of interventions and policies to address the opioid crisis. 

This research report from the Urban Institute aims to provide input into a comprehensive community response through a systematic review and assessment of existing evidence to discern the effectiveness of interventions aimed to prevent and treat opioid use disorder (OUD) among adolescents in Ohio.

Through a targeted systematic literature review, this report identified and assessed promising interventions for addressing OUD among adolescents in three areas: (1) prevention, (2) screening and referral to treatment, and (3) treatment.

This is a report from Arnold Ventures and Carnevale consisting of a team of researchers that organizes what is known about public health-related services, programs, and strategies that have the strongest evidence for effectively putting abatement funds to work that may be the result of future opioid litigation settlements. Each intervention is classified by level of evidence and are represented across the continuum of care. 

This CDC report is designed to assist a wide range of stakeholders in understanding and navigating effective strategies to prevent opioid overdose in their communities. It provides evidence for specific opioid policies and strategies and discusses existing implementation of these interventions in communities. 

This Advisory from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration provides detailed guidance for taking medications for opioid use disorder (OUD) during pregnancy. It also describes barriers to such treatment, including stigma, and calls for service providers to prioritize health equity for underserved pregnant people with OUD who are in critical need of culturally responsive and empathetic care.

This is an executive summary from the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) that provides updated guidelines for treating opioid use disorder (OUD). Major revisions include: comprehensive treatment with psychosocial services should be encouraged but not required to receive medications treatment, there is no recommended time limit on medication treatment, all three forms of medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) should be made available, and naloxone should be co-prescribed along with MOUD. Recommendations for special populations, such as pregnant women with OUD, those involved in the criminal justice system, and adolescents are discussed. 

This is a case study that describes the collaboration between a health plan and a healthcare organization in Minnesota to improve access to substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. The health plan serves those that have both Medicaid and Medicare, a population with many comorbidities. Initial findings showed that the number of inpatient admissions for SUD and mental health-related diagnoses declined among beneficiaries of the health plan, while the rate of residential SUD treatment stays increased.

This is a report from the Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts that highlights initiatives in rural areas to increase access to medications for opioid use disorder, such as training primary care providers, involving family members and social supports, redesigning hospital care, and leveraging community paramedics to engage people in treatment.