Maryland Prisons Report 41% Drop In Contraband Suboxone Film Following Medicaid PDL Change

Maryland prisons report that contraband seizures of Suboxone film, a thin dissolvable formulation of oral buprenorphine and naloxone used for opioid dependence treatment, dropped by 41% between July and October 2016 compared to the prior year.

The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) credited the drop to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) decision to remove Suboxone film from the Medicaid preferred drug list (PDL), effective July 1, 2016. DHMH replaced Suboxone film with Zubsolv, an oral, fast-dissolving buprenorphine-naloxone tablet.

More than 2,300 pieces of Suboxone film have been seized in . . .