Health Data

June 4, 2025 | Data Collection, Health Data, Law Enforcement, Opioids, Public Health, Public Safety, Reports & Studies, Substance Use Disorder

Beginning in 2020, the Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association (LAPPA) undertook an ongoing research project to identify both currently-in-force statutes and recently proposed legislation related to overdose fatality review (OFR), throughout all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories, titled “Overdose Fatality Review Boards: State Laws” (previously updated February 2021). This document represents the latest iteration of that project, with information updated through December 2023. As of that date, 18 states have laws authorizing the establishment of state-level and/or locality-level OFRs....

April 14, 2025 | Data Collection, Health Data, Recovery, Reports & Studies, Substance Use Disorder, Treatments

In 2024, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) convened an interagency working group (IWG) comprised of 30 federal agencies to identify federal recovery research gaps and opportunities on recovery from substance use disorder (SUD). This article outlines the process undertaken to identify these research opportunities and describes four core research topic areas and three cross-cutting themes and provides the rationale for their selection. It also identifies potential pathways for recovery research, including evaluation and data collection activities, and discusses challenges and potential opportunities for recovery research....

February 11, 2021 | Controlled Substances, Health Data, Model Laws, Public Health, Public Safety

The Model Overdose Fatality Review Teams Act creates a legislative framework for establishing county-level, multidisciplinary overdose fatality review (OFR) teams in individual states. While overdose deaths occur nationally, OFRs established at the local level allow for the identification of and responses to specific local patterns related to drug overdoses. This model act addresses the duties, responsibilities, and composition of OFR teams in order for them to properly examine and understand the circumstances leading up to a fatal overdose....

August 19, 2020 | Electronic Health Records, Fact Sheets, Health Data, Recovery, Substance Misuse, Treatments

In the early 1970’s, as part of its efforts to increase treatment for substance use disorder and reduce the stigma surrounding such treatment, the federal government enacted the Drug Abuse Office and Treatment Act of 1972. That Act included a statutory provision for the confidentiality of patient records, now codified at 42 U.S.C. § 290dd-2. This section provides the legal basis for regulations first adopted in 1975 that supplement and expand on the confidentiality provisions of 42 U.S.C. § 290dd-2. These regulations, known colloquially as “42 C.F.R. Part 2” or just “Part 2”, provide increased protection for the records of patients receiving treatment for substance use disorder. Subsequent amendments over the years to both 42 U.S.C. § 290dd-2 and 42 C.F.R. Part 2 served to modernize, clarify, and expand upon the protections granted by the original provisions. This fact sheet provides information about federal laws related to privacy protections for treatment records....