Brittany Paige Mihalec-Adkins, M.S.Ed, Elizabeth Coppola, M.A., Denise A. Hines, Ph.D., Sarah Verbiest, Dr.P.H., M.S.W., M.P.H., and Shelley MacDermid Wadsworth, Ph.D. – 2020
Abstract
Over the past decade, the number of children in the U.S. child welfare system has steadily increased, alongside rising opioid misuse and associated deaths. This brief presents the intertwined landscapes of opioid misuse and child and family welfare in three geographically different states—Indiana, Massachusetts, and North Carolina. State-level policy responses to the opioid epidemic and the associated impacts of it on children and families should invest in two-generation approaches to substance use disorder (SUD) prevention and treatment, optimize early detection and safe treatment of SUD among pregnant women, and expand access to medication-assisted treatment for individuals struggling with opioid abuse, including parents in the child welfare system.