Opioids are medications that relieve pain. In the United States, opioid treatment programs (OTPs)
provide medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for people diagnosed with an opioid-use disorder.
Methadone is a medication used in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) to help people reduce or
quit their use of heroin or other opiates. MAT patients also must receive counseling, which can
include different forms of behavioral therapy.
Conduct an economic evaluation of an OTP that offers both MAT and counseling for adolescents
with opioid use disorders. Take a societal perspective. You can make any assumptions regarding
quantities and types of resources used and monetary conversion factors used to convert costs and
benefits into dollar amounts. Carefully describe every choice and assumption made.
OTP includes:
- Motivational enhancement treatment/cognitive behavior therapy, one group session per
week - Daily methadone maintenance treatment
- List all economic costs incurred over the course of one year. Remember that, besides
variable costs that vary with the number of patients (e.g., counselors, supplies such as
medications, medical supplies), the agency incurs fixed costs every year (e.g., administrative
personnel, buildings and facilities, office supplies, and miscellaneous costs with gas,
electricity, water, etc.).
For an instrument used to evaluate the economic costs of substance use disorder treatment,
use the Brief DATCAP found here:
http://www.datcap.com/
- Calculate the total economic costs of the OTP over one year.
- Calculate the annual average cost per patient using the total costs and the number of patients
in treatment.
