This paper summarizes community forums that were held at nine locations throughout rural northeast Minnesota from October 2015 through March 2018. Each forum was planned by a university researcher and a planning team composed of community leaders and local public health officials and included a variety of professional speakers from health care, public health, law enforcement, and treatment and recovery, as well as individuals from the community who shared their own personal stories of addiction and recovery.

The different ingredients of a successful forum that increased community collaboration are discussed within this document. 

This is a presentation from the South East Area Health Education Center (SEAHEC) in Wilmington, NC that describes the collaborative nature of the community opioid response in this area. There is specific focus on the different types of stakeholders involved. 

This is an academic paper that describes community meetings held in a rural area of Oklahoma to address to the opioid crisis. Surveys showed that holding group discussions and listening to experts may increase engagement of the community in a response, with priorities being access to treatment and youth-based prevention. 

This is a report which offers information on how local health departments in New York can improve their responses to the opioid epidemic with a focus on post-overdose response interventions. The report serves as a blueprint for community partnerships aiming to prevent opioid overdose related deaths by connecting at risk individuals with low threshold services. 

This is a research report from the Urban Institute that provides a scope of the opioid crisis and its far-reaching impacts. Next, criminal justice responses are discussed and specific programs are highlighted. 

This is an article in Health Affairs that describes the wide-ranging impact of the opioid crisis on Kentuckians, highlights programs and initiatives around the state to address the crisis, and discusses the role of research to inform interventions.  

This is an academic paper published in JAMA psychiatry that rigorously reviews the evidence for using contingency management in conjunction with medications for opioid use disorder. The study concluded that this technique is helpful in improving retention on medications and increasing abstinence in individuals with opioid use disorder. 

This is a report from the New York State Association of Counties that highlights the different programs that have been implemented to address the opioid crisis across counties in New York. Most of the county responses were led through the actions of coalitions and task forces. 

This is an academic article that discusses why people who use drugs are at increased risk for exposure to COVID-19, due to structural and social challenges, and why this population is at increased risk for a more severe course of the virus, primarily due to comorbidities. 

This is a collection of a wide range of COVID-19 resources from the Curated Library of Opioid Use for Decision-Makers (CLOUD) across the continuum of care: prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery. 

This is an academic paper that provides commentary on the temporary changes made to opioid use disorder treatment during the coronavirus pandemic, such as telemedicine, relaxed regulations around medications for opioid use disorder, and decarceration, and how sustain these changes will have positive long-term impacts on the opioid crisis. 

This is an academic paper that examines how the challenges presented by the coronavirus may further marginalize people who use drugs, especially in rural areas. The healthcare system, criminal justice system, housing, and overdose risks are discussed.