Health Care Policy and Substance Abuse Treatment Access

PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Increasing access to substance abuse treatment is one of the great challenges facing the US health care system. This project will use large national and state representative population-based surveys to assess whether implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is associated with an increase or decrease in the percentage of adults with substance use disorders who have Medicaid or private health insurance and who receive treatment for their addictions. New information will determine whether gaps in substance abuse treatment are widening or narrowing and will evaluate which clinical populations and substance abuse services are being most affected by the law.