To complement the opioid prescribing guidelines that the University of Buffalo Department of Emergency Medicine established in 2016, Dr. Joshua Lynch developed the Medication for Addiction Treatment and Electronic Referrals (MATTERS) program. He saw the need for MATTERs because the “window of opportunity” to help someone with a substance use disorder is small, and he wanted to immediately link a patient who had overdosed to a treatment program that is right for that individual.

The program, first named, “Buffalo MATTERS,” was born from Dr. Lynch’s observations of the limitations of care, barriers to treatment, and lengthy referral to treatment times for overdose patients. He began the program by training emergency department doctors and other healthcare providers who can prescribe medications on: (1) prescribing opioids responsibly; (2) medication for addiction treatment (e.g., buprenorphine); and (3) immediate referral to substance use treatment. An electronic platform allows someone to be linked to treatment within 24-48 hours of an overdose.

The program has expanded throughout New York, with partnerships with more than 100 hospitals, 200 referring sites, 250 treatment organizations, and 1,000 pharmacies across the state. Those who are referred through MATTERS can choose from over 2,000 weekly appointments. They may also receive harm reduction and healthcare resources. Moreover, the program provides transportation, telehealth services, medication vouchers, peer recovery support, free fentanyl and xylazine test strips, and has several harm reduction vending machines throughout the state.

MATTERS has been so successful in New York State that it plans to expand to help the neighboring states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania start programs. Florida has also started a program based on the MATTERS model.

For more information about MATTERS, logon to https://mattersnetwork.org/.