Inmates’ opioid treatment will continue in Bay State prisons

Those already being treated for Opioid Use Disorder before doing time anywhere in the Bay State will continue to get their medications while incarcerated, the feds announced.

In what Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins called a “massive shift in thinking for corrections,” her office announced Friday it had completed work with state corrections officials and sheriffs in a review to ensure compliance with what she says is a requirement of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“Medications are a vitally important weapon in battling the opioid crisis, and our carceral facilities are on the front lines in that raging battle,” Rollins said in a statement.

Those suffering from OUD include those addicted to prescription pain relievers, heroin and powerful synthetics like fentanyl, according to the National Institute for Health.

The disorder, along with more general substance abuse disorders, is a major problem for correctional facilities.

More than half of state prisoners and two-thirds of sentenced jailed inmates suffered from some drug dependence in the U.S., according to a special report by the U.S. Department of Justice last revised in August 2020. That compares to only 5% of the national adult population.

In 2019, the state Department of Corrections reported that of the “8,300 inmates in Massachusetts state prison facilities, an estimated 1500 have a diagnosed Opioid Use Disorder,” when it received more than $1.2 million in federal funding for treatment programs in October 2019.

There are currently three approved drugs to treat OUD: buprenorphine, methadone and naltrexone, according to Pew Charitable Trusts.

Methadone is a long-acting opioid agonist that if taken daily in liquid, powder and diskette forms can reduce the “opioid craving and withdrawal and blunts or blocks the effects of opioids,” according the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist, according to SAMHSA that still produces euphoric effects in low to moderate doses but to a significantly smaller extent than full agonists like methadone or heroin. It’s also used to diminish physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms.

Naltrexone is different than the others: it’s not an opioid and is not addictive, but instead binds and blocks opioid receptors so that opioid addicts can’t experience the euphoric and sedative effects of opioids.

MaTT SToNE / HErald STaFF FilE FIGHTING THE CRISIS: Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins speaks during an arraignment at Suffolk Superior Court in Oct. 2021. In an effort to help combat the opioid crisis, Rollins said those suffering with Opioid Use Disorder prior to being incarcerated should still receive treatment after going behind bars.