Principle 2
Use Evidence to Guide Spending
At this point in the overdose epidemic, researchers and clinicians have built a substantial body of evidence demonstrating what works and what does not. States and localities should use this information to make funding decisions.
Jurisdictions run the risk of using new dollars on programs that do not work or are even counterproductive if they do not rely on evidence to guide the spending. As one example, people with opioid use disorder in many residential treatment facilities are prohibited from being treated with methadone or buprenorphine, despite evidence that these medications reduce the chance of overdose death by 50% or more. To address this gap, jurisdictions can use the dollars to help residential programs transition to offering a full range of medication treatment options.
How can jurisdictions adopt this principle?
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Direct Funds to programs supported by evidence.
Jurisdictions should fund initiatives demonstrated by research to work and not fund programs shown not to work. Interventions that work, ranging from youth prevention efforts to harm reduction programs to communications campaigns that address stigma, have been compiled by a number of different organizations. See the Resources page for examples of these summaries, which should serve as references as jurisdictions determine which interventions to fund. Additionally, state and local agencies that oversee substance use interventions have significant expertise regarding programs that work.
Should jurisdictions fund programs that have not been studied, they should also allocate sufficient dollars to confirm their effectiveness.
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Remove policies that may block adoption of programs that work.
In many jurisdictions, state and local policy change may need to occur in order for affected communities to implement evidence-based models. For example, state restrictions may cap the number of methadone clinics that may operate in the state, may make it difficult for nurse practitioners to prescribe buprenorphine, or may impede good harm reduction practices by banning syringe service programs. States should ensure that their regulations are not more restrictive than federal guidelines.
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Build data collection capacity.
An important part of determining which programs are working in a given jurisdiction is collecting sufficient data. Jurisdictions should consider using opioid settlement funds to build the capacity of their public health department to collect data and evaluate policies, programs, and strategies designed to address substance use.
In particular, jurisdictions should be sure that they have sufficient data to ensure that they are meeting the needs communities of color. Localities should make data available to the public in annual reports and on publicly facing data dashboards.
