A New Methadone Playbook: How DOGE and Deregulation Can Save Lives

Jeffrey A. Singer

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), over 6.1 million people over age 12 have opioid use disorder (OUD). Increasing access to OUD treatment would reduce the number of people who seek drugs in the dangerous black market and, in turn, reduce the risk and incidence of overdose deaths. 

In the United States before 1972, primary care physicians would prescribe methadone to people with OUD. Since 1972, however, only...