Assessing waivered and non-waivered physician barriers to treating patients with substance use disorders: a cross-sectional Kentucky pilot.

Introduction: Opioid and other substance use disorders (OUD/SUDs) have been and continue to be significant public health issues. The standard of care for OUD is the use of medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) in conjunction with counseling or behavioral therapies, yet research has indicated that barriers exist for patients accessing MOUD as well as for physicians prescribing MOUD due to requirements associated with the DATA 2000 waiver.

Methods: A pilot cross-sectional survey was conducted among Kentucky physicians in order to reassess common barriers as well as to explore barriers that non-waivered providers face to becoming waivered.