Challenges and Opportunities for Integrating Substance Use Disorder Treatment into Community Health Centers

Overview

Fatal overdoses surged during the acute phase of the COVID-19 public health emergency and continue to rise. Stressors, loss of social support, and disruptions in treatment and recovery services exacerbated longstanding gaps in access to high-quality substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, particularly for communities of color. Community health centers (CHCs) focus on medically underserved populations and have long delivered comprehensive and culturally-informed care. They are well-poised to improve outcomes for patients with complex needs, address equity gaps, and support improved access to high-quality SUD treatment by further expanding integrated, team-based primary care models. Although CHCs have made great strides in expanding access to Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) and other evidence-based SUD services, CHC leaders continue to report significant logistical, workforce, reimbursement, policy, and stigma-related challenges that have inhibited the adoption and sustainability of SUD services within CHC settings.