Despite the growing body of evidence supporting medication-assisted-treatment, rates of buprenorphine dispensed to young people overall have declined in recent years.

Still, rates among teenage patients dispensed buprenorphine have increased over the last three years.

A new study published in JAMA found that the number of adolescents and young adults dispensed buprenorphine decreased by 6.5% annually between 2020 and 2023. Buprenorphine is the only opioid MAT cleared for use by adolescents aged 16 and over.

“Despite some positive trends, buprenorphine dispensing to adolescents and young adults remains low,” the authors of the study wrote. “In 2023, 712 000 adolescents and young adults aged 12 to 25 years had opioid use disorder. Meanwhile, in this study, 38,907 adolescents and young adults aged 10 to 24 years were dispensed buprenorphine in 2023, indicating that many adolescents and young adults who might benefit from this treatment did not receive it. Barriers to buprenorphine among adolescents and young adults may include few treatment facilities, lack of comfort with medications for opioid use disorder among youth-serving clinicians, and stigma related to opioid use disorder.”

Researchers attributed the decline to a significant decrease in dispensing to young adults between the ages of 20 and 24.

However, there was an increase in buprenorphine dispensing among those aged 10 to 19. However, researchers noted that the volume of buprenorphine dispensing for this age group remains low.

“The increases likely reflect successful outreach to pediatricians, enhanced prescribing through telehealth, and elimination of waiver requirements; these changes might differentially affect young adults, who might be less likely to access health care,” the study authors wrote.

While MAT is the gold standard for opioid use disorder care, only about 1 in 5 individuals with the condition receive MAT, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) put in place telehealth prescribing flexibilities, which allowed controlled substances, including MAT, to be prescribed via telehealth without an in-person visit.

Many hailed these flexibilities as a way to broaden access to MAT. Facing enormous public pressure, the agency has extended the flexibility through 2025. Still, the fate of these flexibilities is uncertain in the future.