Different forms of stigma and rural primary care professionals' willingness to prescribe buprenorphine.

Introduction: Buprenorphine and other medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) are highly effective but substantially under prescribed in the rural United States. Among the most cited barriers to buprenorphine prescribing is stigma, yet little progress has been made in developing successful strategies to reduce stigma and increase access to life-saving medication. One of the key challenges to developing successful implementation strategies is understanding the different types of stigma that limit implementation.

Medicaid Policy and Hepatitis C Treatment Among Rural People Who Use Drugs.

Background: Restrictive Medicaid policies regarding hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment may exacerbate rural health care disparities for people who use drugs (PWUD). We assessed associations between Medicaid restrictions and HCV treatment among rural PWUD.

Methods: We compiled state-specific Medicaid treatment policies across 8 US rural sites in 10 states and merged these with participant survey data.

The Implementation Climate for Integrating Buprenorphine Prescribing into Rural Primary Care.

Background: Rural communities have been significantly affected by opioid use disorder (OUD) and related harms but have less access to evidence-based medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), such as buprenorphine. Given the shortage of specialists in these areas, rural primary care is an important setting to expand buprenorphine access, but implementation is limited.

Objective: To explore implementation climate factors that support or hinder buprenorphine implementation in rural primary care.

Knowledge of medications for opioid use disorder and associated stigma among primary care professionals.

Background: Medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) are the gold standard. However, significant barriers limit their use in the primary care setting, including limited knowledge of the medications and stigmatizing attitudes. In this study, we assess knowledge levels among primary care-aligned professionals (PCPs) currently in practice, and whether knowledge of MOUD is associated with stigma and treatment attitudes.