As the United States continues to grapple with an opioid addiction crisis, new research suggests Medicaid plays a key role in expanding access to treatment.
A study published in JAMA Network Open found that Medicaid expansions between 2017 and 2023 significantly increased access to buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder.
In the eight states that expanded Medicaid after 2018, Idaho, Maine, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah and Virginia, the number of people receiving buprenorphine prescriptions rose by more than 21% between 2019 and 2023.
The findings come as potential federal Medicaid cuts raise concerns about continued access to treatment. The Congressional Budget Office projects the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would reduce federal Medicaid spending by roughly $880 billion to $900 billion over the next decade.
“These results arrive at a critical moment for policymakers and health professionals,” said Stephen Crystal, a co-author of the study and director of the Rutgers Center for Health Services Research, in a press release.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 80,000 people in the United States died from opioid overdoses between October 2023 and September 2024.
Researchers say Medicaid plays a central role in treatment access because people with opioid use disorder are disproportionately low-income, meaning expanded coverage can significantly increase access to care.
“These results could be incredibly important for public policymakers and state governments wrestling with the Medicaid cuts proposed under the recent H.R. 1 federal legislation,” said Nicole Siegel, lead author of the study and a postdoctoral research fellow at the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University, in a press release. “The financial sustainability of Medicaid expansions is under threat, yet this study shows that these expansions are having the kind of widespread impact that earlier research suggested might not be possible.”
The study, conducted by researchers from Rutgers University and Indiana University, analyzed pharmacy claims data from retailers nationwide. In addition to Medicaid expansion, researchers noted that policy changes during that time also made treatment more accessible.
