It will end in tiers: A strategy to include dabblers in the buprenorphine workforce after the X-waiver

Buprenorphine is one of the gold standard medication treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD), with proven effectiveness in preventing overdose, increasing abstinence, and improving quality of life. In the United States, buprenorphine can be legally prescribed and administered in office-based settings from clinicians who are specially credentialed to provide that care under the X-waiver. We believe the X-waiver will ultimately be repealed, but there is a need for a variety of strategies to create a new treatment system after the X-waiver. Building a new tier of treatment capacity will require educational outreach, systems strategies, and enhanced payments.

Automated summary

Buprenorphine is a gold standard medication for treating opioid use disorder, proven to prevent overdose and improve quality of life. The X-waiver allowing clinicians to prescribe buprenorphine in office-based settings is expected to be repealed in the United States, necessitating various strategies to establish a new treatment system.