COVID is Making Opioid Crisis Worse, But Treatment is Changing for the Better

Safety
Published

The strain of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent economic collapse has taken a devastating toll on Americans with opioid misuse disorder.

One addiction doctor who was featured on a recent PBS News Hour segment noted that he has seen a 20% rise in overdoses over the past few months at the 20 treatment facilities he runs across the South.

As patients are laid off and forced out of their homes, those that were on the path to recovery are having a hard time coping with the additional strains imposed by the pandemic.

But a potential silver lining in treatment is the increased, and nearly exclusive, use of telehealth practices. Addiction counselors and physicians have noted that virtual medicine gives them access to patients they did not previously have.

Patients seeking treatment for addiction have always been faced with barriers, many of them physical. Whether it’s reliable transportation to facilities or worries about legal issues, it can be difficult for those with opioid misuse disorder to get qualified help.

Telehealth, however, allows doctors and counselors to meet patients where they are. Healthcare providers can talk to patients, diagnose issues, and even prescribe medication virtually. This shift in how addiction treatment is administered is seen by many as permanent. Even as the opioid crisis worsens, there is hope that this new tool can help going forward.

To help address the crisis, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is holding a webinar, Erasing the Stigma: Ending the Opioid Epidemic, co-hosted with the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA), on Monday, Sept. 28 at 1 p.m. ET to discuss strategies to end the addiction crisis. James Carroll, Director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, will speak at the event.

Construction workers are the most likely of all occupations to use cocaine and misuse prescription opioids, and significantly more likely to become addicted to opioids, such as prescription painkillers, than other workers in the general population. The fatal overdose rate among construction workers is six times higher than in the greater population.

It is critical that home builders recognize issues on their job sites. Opioid misuse not only affects those struggling with addiction, but can lead to safety and other issues for everyone on a site.

NAHB and its partners have created resources specifically for home builders to help them identify and address potential opioid issues on the job site. Access those resources here.

For questions about NAHB's resources on opioids, contact David Jaffe.

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

Legal | Energy

Jul 10, 2025

NAHB Presents Oral Arguments Challenging HUD’s 2021 IECC Mandate

On July 9, the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Texas heard oral arguments in NAHB’s challenge to the government’s final determination requiring that homes built under certain housing programs comply with the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) and 2019 ASHRAE-90.1.

Economics

Jul 10, 2025

Remodeling Market Sentiment Dips in Second Quarter

NAHB released its NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the second quarter, posting a reading of 59, down four points compared to the previous quarter. While the reading of 59 is still in positive territory, this is only the second time the RMI has dipped below 60 since the survey was revised in the first quarter of 2020.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

Jul 09, 2025

Mortgage Applications Picked Up in June as Rates Eased

Mortgage application activity picked up in June, supported by a slight decline in interest rates. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Market Composite Index, which tracks mortgage application volume, rose 5.4% from May on a seasonally adjusted basis. Compared to June 2024, total applications were up 21.1%.

Economics

Jul 09, 2025

Who’s Still Working from Home in 2025? A Look at America’s Telework Trends

Remote work may no longer dominate the U.S. labor force as it did during the height of the pandemic in 2020, but it still represents a substantial share of employment today.

Economics

Jul 08, 2025

Top Ten Builder Share Rises Again in 2024

The top ten builders captured a record 44.7% of all new U.S. single-family home closings in 2024, up 2.4 percentage points from 2023 (42.3%).