This is an academic paper that assessed community readiness in counties in North Carolina and its relationship to county-level opioid-related mortality and morbidity. Community readiness has been linked to collective action from communities to implement comprehensive responses to the public health issue. Findings indicate that counties with higher opioid-related mortality also had higher community readiness. 

This is a report which offers information on how local health departments in New York can improve their responses to the opioid epidemic with a focus on post-overdose response interventions. The report serves as a blueprint for community partnerships aiming to prevent opioid overdose related deaths by connecting at risk individuals with low threshold services. 

This is a research report from the Urban Institute that provides a scope of the opioid crisis and its far-reaching impacts. Next, criminal justice responses are discussed and specific programs are highlighted. 

This is an article in Health Affairs that describes the wide-ranging impact of the opioid crisis on Kentuckians, highlights programs and initiatives around the state to address the crisis, and discusses the role of research to inform interventions.  

This guide provides practical, evidenced-based strategies and public health approaches, resources, and program models that first responder agencies, their partners, and communities can use to implement or expand practices and approaches for linking people to substance use services. It describes the key role first responders play in encountering those with substance use disorders (SUD), the skills needed to help those in an overdose situation, public health approaches to those with SUD, guidance on implementing first responder initiatives, and resources for such initiatives.

This is a report from the Vera Institute that describes the implementation of a program in the New York prison system to train and equip those reentering society with naloxone. Results suggest that this is an innovative strategy to get naloxone in the hands of a high-risk population. 

This online tool from the University of Texas School of Public Health estimates the impact and cost-effectiveness of providing peer support services and naloxone distribution at recovery community organizations. 

This is a report from the New York State Association of Counties that highlights the different programs that have been implemented to address the opioid crisis across counties in New York. Most of the county responses were led through the actions of coalitions and task forces. 

This is an academic paper that describes interventions put in place in British Columbia, Canada to address unique problems exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, such as safe supply and relaxing medication treatment regulations. Protective measures for first responders responding to overdoses is also discussed. 

This is an academic article that discusses why people who use drugs are at increased risk for exposure to COVID-19, due to structural and social challenges, and why this population is at increased risk for a more severe course of the virus, primarily due to comorbidities. 

This is an academic paper that provides commentary on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on syringe service programs (SEPs) in rural Appalachia. Although SEPs are closing nationally, this region has been disproportionately affected by closings and restricted services due to limited resources. Impacts on and responses of specific harm reduction organizations are highlighted. 

This is a collection of a wide range of COVID-19 resources from the Curated Library of Opioid Use for Decision-Makers (CLOUD) across the continuum of care: prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery.