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More New Yorkers die of drug overdoses than homicides, suicides and car crashes combined. Over 80% of drug overdoses in the city involve opioids, which include heroin and prescription painkillers, such as:
Recently fentanyl, a drug that is 50 times more powerful than heroin, has been showing up in heroin, cocaine, pills marked as Xanax® and other drugs. Fentanyl was involved in over 80 percent of the overdose deaths in NYC in 2021.
Not everyone who takes opioids (or other drugs) will develop an addiction, but for those who do, help is available in NYC. Getting help for an addiction does not mean having to leave home, a job or school.
What is Addiction?
Addiction (also called substance use disorder) is a chronic health condition in which people who take drugs continue taking them despite the negative impact on their health or lives. Individuals with addiction may have a difficult time moving on from drug use on their own. When people with an opioid use disorder stop taking opioids, they often get strong urges or cravings for drugs and experience intense muscle aches, nausea and vomiting. These are symptoms of opioid withdrawal. They may continue experiencing strong urges or cravings many months or even years after they stopped using. These symptoms of can lead a person to return to drug use, even after periods of abstinence and despite a strong desire not to.
Opioid use disorder can be treated successfully with medications. These medications can reduce cravings or urges to use drugs, prevent overdose and protect a person’s overall health. Treatment works best when it is tailored to the individual and addresses drug use, as well as other social, emotional and health issues. Similar to other chronic health conditions, people with addiction can have periods where their health condition is not well-controlled and they return to drug use. This is not a sign of weakness or personal failure. Good care often requires adjusting treatment or providing additional support.
Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder with Medication
The most effective treatment for opioid use disorder includes the use of medications, particularly methadone or buprenorphine. These medications are prescribed by a health care provider and taken daily. They are most successful when taken for an open-ended time period, possibly for months, years or sometimes even lifelong, depending on the individual. These medications are often combined with counseling or supportive care.
Such longer-term treatment allows people who have an opioid use disorder to achieve greater stability in their lives and health. This reduces their risk of returning to drug use.
Treatment for opioid use disorder with methadone or buprenorphine has long been shown to reduce a person’s risk of overdose, HIV, hepatitis and other bloodborne diseases. They are the gold standard of treatment for heroin and prescription opioid use disorder.
How Methadone and Buprenorphine Work
Methadone and buprenorphine reduce the risk of return to heroin or other opioid use and overdose by:
Listen to these New Yorkers’ stories of how buprenorphine or methadone treatment helped them move on from opioid use disorder.
How to Find Treatment
There are several ways in NYC to find a health care provider who treats opioid use disorder with buprenorphine (Suboxone® is a common brand name), or to find a methadone treatment program. You can:
The following table lists other non-profit primary care sites that also offer buprenorphine treatment. If your non-profit primary care practice would like to be included on this list, email buprenorphine@health.nyc.gov.
Other Non-Profit Primary Care Sites Offering Buprenorphine Treatment | ||
---|---|---|
Borough | Location | Phone Number |
Bronx | Montefiore Comprehensive Health Care Center (CHCC) | 718-410-3559 |
Jacobi Internal Medicine Clinic | 718-918-6143 | |
Inwood Health Center | 855-681-8700 | |
The HUB Health Center | 855-681-8700 | |
Montefiore — Grand Concourse | 718-920-7608 | |
Brooklyn | BMS Family Health Center Main | 718-345-5000 |
BMS Family Health Center Bristol | 718-342-0060 | |
BMS Family Health Center Genesis | 646-459-9400 | |
BMS Family Health Center Ashford | 347-505-1800 | |
Community Healthcare Network — Crown Heights | 718-778-0198 | |
Kings County Hospital Ambulatory Care Center | 347-450-1354 | |
NYU Family Health Center at Sunset Terrace | 718-437-5280 x1 | |
Church Avenue Health Center (Brightpoint) | 855-681-8700 | |
Manhattan | The Nest Community Health Center | 646-496-6478 |
Family Health Center of Harlem (IFH) | 844-434-2778 | |
Sidney Hillman/Phillips Family Practice (IFH) | 212-206-5200 | |
Amsterdam Family Health Center (IFH) | 212-865-4104 |
The above lists do not include all primary care providers offering buprenorphine. You can find additional providers by searching this map of buprenorphine and other treatment providers in and around the city.
Medication Safety
If you take methadone or buprenorphine:
Loss of Tolerance After Opioid Medication Treatment
The risk of overdose increases when people who have stopped taking opioids return to opioid use because the body’s tolerance to opioids will be lower. Even a small amount can cause an overdose, especially now that fentanyl is increasingly mixed into drugs. The risk is even greater for people after participating in a detox program or an abstinence treatment program, or after having been hospitalized or in prison.
Keep Others Safe
If you take medications:
Prevent Overdose
Overdose is a serious health risk for people who use opioids, whether prescribed or illicit.
For information on how to prevent overdose, see our Overdose Prevention page, or download our free mobile app for smartphones, STOP OD NYC: Android | iOS. The app provides a ready source of information, including how to recognize and reverse an overdose with naloxone, and where to get it.