The United States is in the midst of a significant, decades-long opioid epidemic, with more than 2.6 million Americans meeting the criteria for opioid use disorder (OUD). Opioid-related overdoses have also been on the rise, along with stigma related to OUD and is one of the biggest barriers to fully implementing evidence-based treatment responses needed to positively impact the opioid epidemic, according to Nathan Kruis, assistant professor of criminal justice at Penn State Altoona and his research team in a new Insights from Experts post.
Fortunately, there are ways in which stigma of OUD can be alleviated, and Penn State researchers are leading this effort throughout the Commonwealth, as well as nationally. Read more about these efforts to reduce the stigma of OUD here.
For more on information on the opioid epidemic, mental health, Covid-19 and other issues, visit the Insights from Experts website — a partnership of Penn State's Social Science Research Institute and the Center for Health Care and Policy Research.