220-142 Issues and Impacts Related to Participation in Opioid Treatment Programs in Florida

Publication Date: 06/01/2011

Description:

Analyses in FY '10-11 focused on three areas of investigation related to persons in opioid treatment programs; 1) those related to cost issues, 2) the intersection with pain experience, and 3) retention in care. All are relevant areas of investigation for a population that is changing and is likely to grow substantially over the next decade. Recent estimates suggest that the cost of opioid addiction in the United States in upwards of $22 billion dollars (Mark, Woody, Juday, & Kleber, 2001). The economic burden of opioid addiction includes costs associated with drug related crime and welfare expenditures, work absenteeism and productivity losses, physical and mental health care expenses, and, of course, the cost of opioid prevention and treatment programs (Blume, 2005).