This Urban Institute report notes the positive effect that safety net programs have on program recipients and their families. When reviewing program participation in TANF, SNAP, and public health insurance, the researchers discovered that the number of hardships that participating low-income families with children faced dropped by 48 percent, and food insufficiency decreased by 72 percent. The number of hardships was defined as the inability to meet essential expenses such as rent and utilities.

This interactive dashboard developed by Mathematica Policy Research depicts the death rate, risk factors, and treatment facilities for opioid use in the United States. S.T.Op NextGen allows users to search by zip code, helping individuals and communities to make informed, data-driven decisions. It also includes a map showing nearby treatment facilities, based on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator data.

This joint report by the Center for Law and Social Policy and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities offers guidance on how to improve the administration of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid at the state and local levels. Rather than critiquing existing programs, this report illustrates implementation of management reforms in the intake and renewal processes.

This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation report explores the importance of the relationship between self-regulation and improved economic outcomes. The report identifies the psychological insights behind self-regulation, which refers to the personality factors and skills that allow individuals to intentionally control their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. This control enables people to set goals and solve problems. Also included is a discussion of ways to increase this internal capacity.

This kit is a comprehensive set of tools that includes: strategy guides about how to prevent overdoses and make early interventions for treatment and recovery; a case study of a response; survivor stories from five former addicts; fact sheets for use at home and the workplace; posters and graphics; and informative videos from the medical community.

Visitors can use the online order form on this National Safety Council webpage to order free resources to help them reduce opioid risk. Resources include: envelopes that can be used to send up to 8 ounces of unused prescription medication to a compliance company that will dispose of the medication using a safe process and Warn-Me Label Cards and Sheets containing self-stick labels that can be used to inform medical professionals that patients want to discuss the risks of prescribed opioids and possible safer alternatives.

This free employer kit is designed to address prescription drug use in the workplace and includes: a guide, “The Proactive Role Employers Can Take: Opioids in the Workplace;” tools to evaluate an organization’s employee benefit plans used to stem addiction; fact sheets and handouts to educate employees; a set of safety talks that management can deliver to employees; and a poster series for display about home safety and disposal of prescription drugs.

This research report from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation outlines the geography of the opioid epidemic and the correlation between opioid use and higher rates of poverty and unemployment.

This infographic from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides a brief identification of key data points on the history and status of the opioid epidemic.

Massachusetts leads the way in providing social workers the resources they need to combat the opioid crisis. The Governor created a Social Work Education Working Group on Substance Misuse, which has partnered with the National Association of Social Workers and local social work graduate schools to develop a unified framework for caseworkers to manage substance abuse. This report outlines the core principles of their strategy, which will be implemented statewide in social work curriculum. The guidelines include the Primary Prevention Domain of Preventing Substance Misuse, the Secondary Prevention Domain of Caring for Individuals At-Risk for Substance Use Disorders, and the Tertiary Prevention Domain of Managing Substance Use Disorders as a Chronic Disease. Within these three realms, the working group lists subareas of focus. This outline can be used as an example for other states or practitioners looking to develop supportive and standardized curriculum for those on the front lines of the opioid epidemic.