Keeping the Momentum: Moving Forward in the Opioid Epidemic

Recent data offer encouraging signs that opioid overdoses may be declining, with overdose deaths falling nearly 27% in 2024 compared to 2023. As policymakers work to sustain this progress, efforts to expand access to medications for opioid use disorder and to leverage telemedicine remain critical. At the same time, some leaders are retreating from harm reduction strategies, and others are considering mandatory treatment approaches. The broader policy environment, including cuts to research funding, restructuring within the Department of Health and Human Services, and changes to Medicaid, is also shaping the landscape of substance use disorder treatment. This seminar will explore the current trajectory of the opioid epidemic and examine policy opportunities and challenges at both the federal and state levels.

Speakers

Jonathan Caulkins, PhD

H. Guyford Stever University Professor of Operations Research and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University Heinz College

Yngvild Olsen, MD, MPH

National Advisor, Manatt Health

Rachel Winograd, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Psychological Sciences; Director, Addiction Science, Practice, Implementation, Research, & Education (ASPIRE) Lab, University of Missouri St. Louis

Zachary Meisel, MD, MPH (moderator)

Vice Chair for Faculty; Director, Center for Emergency Care Policy and Research; Professor of Emergency Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, and Director, Policy and Dissemination Core, CHERISH