Tar Heal: An Evaluation of the Efficacy of North Carolina's Community-Based Initiatives in Combatting the Opioid Epidemic

Abstract

This paper evaluated the efficacy of community-based initiatives (CBIs) in combatting the opioid epidemic in North Carolina. These programs use coordinated, multi-pronged strategies that include partnering with local governments, conducting harm reduction strategies, and increasing access to rehabilitation and treatment services. Using a combination of difference-in-differences and linear regression analyses on panel data, this study evaluated the effects that the implementation of these community programs have had on outcomes associated with substance abuse, including overdoses, rates of HIV, and hospitalizations due to drug poisoning. The results of the difference-in-differences analysis suggest that there was a statistically significant decrease in rates of HIV in North Carolina compared to the control group. The results of the linear regression analysis indicate that CBI implementation was associated with a statistically significant decrease in rates of hospitalizations due to drug poisoning in counties who implemented the programs compared to counties who did not.