The Bridge Center has been featured in The New York Times Magazine!
Author Moises Velasquez-Manoff spent 18 months observing the Bridge model in action at Highland Hospital in Oakland, CA, and talking with experts from the Bridge Center and our network for his investigation into how to curb the opioid epidemic. His exploration sparked a question central to the Bridge Center’s goal to transform the medical system: Why aren’t more clinicians prescribing buprenorphine when strong evidence shows that medication for addiction treatment (MAT) is highly effective and significantly reduces the risk of overdose death?
The article draws on expertise from Bridge leaders to explain that onerous and outdated regulations have made MAT difficult to prescribe; that pervasive stigma around drug use and opioids makes both doctors and patients alike uneasy about MAT. It shows how the Bridge Center has led the charge to overcome these obstacles, with quotes from our very own Dr. Andrew Herring, Dr. Aimee Moulin, and Dr. Kelly Pfeifer and frontline Bridge champion Dr. Carmela Yomtoubian describing the need to push the healthcare system and clinicians to make buprenorphine prescribing a standard practice and give patients a safe, effective option to treat addiction.
We are thankful to Mr. Velasquez-Manoff for bringing attention to the Bridge Center and for presenting a clear explanation of how buprenorphine works and why Bridge and our peers must persist in scaling access to low-barrier MAT in emergency medicine settings and beyond. We’ve already worked with hundreds of hospitals, clinicians, and navigators around the country to integrate MAT into emergency settings, and we know that widescale adoption of our model is attainable.
» Click the link to read “An Effective Treatment for Opioid Addiction Exists. Why Isn’t It Used More?”
We invite you to read and share the article and celebrate this milestone with us as we advance our mission to make evidence-based treatment and care accessible to everyone, everywhere, right when they need it most.
Our work wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of clinicians, navigators, and partners like you. Thank you for being part of this movement. Together, we are changing lives!
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