Read the full NIMH supported study with my @rand.org colleagues Amy Mahler and Rosanna Smart here: www.jaacap.org/article/S089...

Pediatricians, child psychiatrists and educators need to work together to help families find solutions—like pharmacy navigation and behavioral supports—so kids don’t fall behind during medication shortages

These differences mean the shortage could deepen existing gaps in academic achievement and behavioral health for children already facing challenges and barriers to care

Teachers in these schools were significantly more likely to report students having to stop their medication—over 77% in majority-minority schools and 76% in schools with mostly low-income students.

Read the full NIMH supported study here with co-authors Skyler Hulser and Brendan Saloner from @brownpublichealth.bsky.social : www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10....

These treatment settings all matter for recovery, meaning broader Medicaid access offered more pathways for people with SUD to get help when needed most, critical when the overdose crisis was intensifying

Even 6+ years later, treatment rates remained higher than pre-expansion, showing sustained improvements—not just a one-time bump.

Treatment episodes for SUD surged across the board in the first 2-3 years after expansion: overall rates up 39–40% after 2–5 years, with strong gains across the board, in residential, intensive outpatient, and non-intensive outpatient care.

See the full paper with co-authors Jon Cantor, Ryan McBain, Aaron Kofner, Fang Zhang, Alyssa Burnett, Josh Breslau. Melissa Kilberti, Ateev Mehrota from @brownpublichealth.bsky.social and Hao Yu from @deptpopmed.bsky.social here: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Thanks to the NIMH for funding this work and shout-out to all the school leaders who responded to the @rand.org American School Leader Panel!

Policymakers and school boards: are you considering neighborhood context when crafting phone policies? Open dialogue with parents, teachers, and students is key to making effective rules

These differences raise important questions on equity and the impacts for different student populations— teens using phones more freely at school could see impacts on learning and mental health. Middle and high school principals face tough choices balancing safety, independence, and distractions.

And most elementary schools stick to strict bans: over 81% only allow phones on campus if students keep them put away all day. By high school, policies get much looser—many let students use phones outside class or at teacher discretion.

Our national analysis found schools in higher-income communities are more likely to allow phones than those in high-poverty neighborhoods.

Want all the numbers? Check out the NIDA and Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts supported study here:

journals.lww.com/journaladdic...

Bottom line: Medicaid unwinding wasn’t just a paperwork issue- it disrupted effective treatment of opioid use disorder for thousands. Policymakers must find ways to protect coverage and care continuity as insurance rules evolve.

Did other insurance types like commercial insurance and Medicare, or paying out-of-pocket pocket fill the gap? Turns out, they didn’t: overall, more people ended up going without effective treatment.

In states with the greatest Medicaid disenrollment, the changes were greatest: ending episodes rose +5.5%, and new starts fell nearly -4% after unwinding.

Our national study led by @rand.org colleague Rachel Landis in the American Society of Addiction Medicine’s Journal of Addiction Medicine found that after unwinding, more Medicaid buprenorphine treatment episodes ended (+3%), and fewer Medicaid treatment episodes started (-2.6%).