Demographic differences in the cascade of care for unhealthy alcohol use: A cross-sectional analysis of data from the 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

BACKGROUND: The screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) model is recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force to improve recognition of and intervention for unhealthy alcohol use. How SBIRT implementation differs by demographic characteristics is poorly understood. METHODS: We analyzed data from the 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health from respondents ≥18 years old who used an outpatient clinic and had at least one alcoholic drink within the past year. Respondents were grouped into one of three mutually exclusive groups: "no binge drinking or alcohol use disorder (AUD)," "binge drinking without AUD," or "AUD." Outcome variables were likelihood of screening, brief intervention (BI), referral to treatment (RT), and AUD treatment. The demographic predictors on which outcomes were regressed included gender, age, race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, insurance status, and history of military involvement. Consistent with SBIRT guidelines, the entire sample was included in the screening model; screened persons with either binge drinking without AUD or with AUD were included in the BI model; screened persons with AUD were included in the RT model, and persons referred to treatment with AUD were included in the AUD treatment model. RESULTS: Analyses included 120,804 respondents. Women were more likely than men to be screened, but less likely to receive BI or RT. When referred to treatment, women were more likely than men to receive it. Persons aged ≥50 were least likely to be screened about alcohol, but most likely to receive BI, while persons aged 18-25 were least likely to receive BI or AUD treatment. Racial and ethnic minorities were less likely than White persons to be screened; Asians were less likely to receive RT, and Black persons were less likely to receive treatment than White persons. Persons identifying as gay, lesbian, or bisexual were equally as likely or more likely to receive SBIRT or AUD treatment as those identifying as heterosexual. Persons without insurance were less likely to be screened than those with insurance. Persons with a history of military involvement were more likely to be screened and receive BI and RT than persons who had not served in the military. CONCLUSIONS: Demographic disparities in SBIRT implementation exist. Addressing the sources of these disparities and minimizing attrition from care could improve outcomes for persons with unhealthy alcohol use.

Association between recent overdose and chronic pain among individuals in treatment for opioid use disorder.

Chronic pain increases risk for opioid overdose among individuals with opioid use disorder. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationship between recent overdose and whether or not chronic pain is active. 3,577 individuals in treatment for opioid use disorder in 2017 or 2018 were surveyed regarding recent overdoses and chronic pain. Demographics from the 2017 Treatment Episode Data Set, which includes all U.S. facilities licensed or certified to provide substance use care, were used to evaluate the generalizability of the sample. χ2 tests and logistic regression models were used to compare associations between recent overdoses and chronic pain. Specifically, active chronic pain was associated with opioid overdose among people in treatment for opioid use disorder. Individuals with active chronic pain were more likely to have had a past month opioid overdose than those with no history chronic pain (adjusted OR = 1.55, 95% CI 1.16-2.08, p = 0.0003). In contrast, individuals with prior chronic pain, but no symptoms in the past 30 days, had a risk of past month opioid overdose similar to those with no history of chronic pain (adjusted OR = 0.88, 95% CI 0.66-1.17, p = 0.38). This suggests that the incorporation of treatment for chronic pain into treatment for opioid use disorder may reduce opioid overdoses.

Association of Bupropion, Naltrexone, and Opioid Agonist Treatment With Stimulant-Related Admissions Among People With Opioid Use Disorder: A Case-Crossover Analysis.

Background: Stimulant use has substantially increased among people with opioid use disorder (OUD) and is associated with worse treatment outcomes. This study's objective was to compare risk of stimulant-related emergency department (ED) and hospital admissions associated with exposure to bupropion, OUD medication (buprenorphine, naltrexone, and methadone), and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs; active comparator) relative to days without active prescriptions for medication.Methods: This recurrent-event, case-crossover study used insurance claims from 51,084 individuals with OUD enrolled in the IBM MarketScan (2006-2016) Databases who had at least 1 stimulant-related ED or hospital admission. Conditional logistic regression models estimated the risk of admissions between days without active prescriptions and days with prescriptions for bupropion, OUD medication, and SSRIs. Secondary analyses were conducted by stimulant subtype (cocaine; amphetamine) and event subtype (falls, injuries, or poisonings; psychotic events).Results: Compared to days without active prescriptions, days with bupropion treatment were associated with decreased odds of stimulant-related ED or hospital admissions (odds ratio [OR] = 0.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.72-0.82) Among OUD medications, we observed strong protective associations with decreased admissions for buprenorphine (OR = 0.67; 95% CI, 0.64-0.71), naltrexone (OR = 0.65; 95% CI, 0.60-0.70), and methadone (OR = 0.59; 95% CI, 0.51-0.67). The SSRI active comparator group was associated with a small protective association with decreased admissions (OR = 0.90; 95% CI, 0.86-0.93). These effects were sustained in secondary analyses stratifying by stimulant and event subtype.Conclusions: Bupropion and OUD medication, including both naltrexone and opioid agonists, are associated with fewer stimulant-related ED or hospital admissions in patients with OUD. Bupropion may show promise as adjunctive therapy targeting stimulant-specific poisoning risk.

Analysis of Stimulant Prescriptions and Drug-Related Poisoning Risk Among Persons Receiving Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder.

Importance: Stimulant medication use is common among individuals receiving buprenorphine for opioid use disorder (OUD). Associations between prescription stimulant use and treatment outcomes in this population have been understudied. Objectives: To investigate whether use of prescription stimulants was associated with (1) drug-related poisoning and (2) buprenorphine treatment retention. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective, recurrent-event cohort study with a case-crossover design used a secondary analysis of administrative claims data from IBM MarketScan Commercial and Multi-State Medicaid databases from January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2016. Primary analyses were conducted from March 1 through August 31, 2021. Individuals aged 12 to 64 years with an OUD diagnosis and prescribed buprenorphine who experienced at least 1 drug-related poisoning were included in the analysis. Unit of observation was the person-day. Exposures: Days of active stimulant prescriptions. Main Outcomes and Measures: Primary outcomes were drug-related poisoning and buprenorphine treatment retention. Drug-related poisonings were defined using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, and International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision, codes; treatment retention was defined by continuous treatment claims until a 45-day gap was observed. Results: There were 13 778 567 person-days of observation time among 22 946 individuals (mean [SD] age, 32.8 [11.8] years; 50.3% men) who experienced a drug-related poisoning. Stimulant treatment days were associated with 19% increased odds of drug-related poisoning (odds ratio [OR], 1.19 [95% CI, 1.06-1.34]) compared with nontreatment days; buprenorphine treatment days were associated with 38% decreased odds of poisoning (OR, 0.62 [95% CI, 0.59-0.65]). There were no significant interaction effects between use of stimulants and buprenorphine. Stimulant treatment days were associated with decreased odds of attrition from buprenorphine treatment (OR, 0.64 [95% CI, 0.59-0.70]), indicating that stimulants were associated with 36% longer mean exposure to buprenorphine and its concomitant protection. Conclusions and Relevance: Among persons with OUD, use of prescription stimulants was associated with a modest increase in per-day risk of drug-related poisoning, but this risk was offset by the association between stimulant use and improved retention to buprenorphine treatment, which is associated with protection against overdose.

Comparative Effectiveness Associated With Buprenorphine and Naltrexone in Opioid Use Disorder and Cooccurring Polysubstance Use.

Importance: Despite prevalent polysubstance use, treatment patterns and outcomes for individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) and cooccurring substance use disorders (SUD) are understudied. Objective: To evaluate the distribution of buprenorphine and naltrexone initiation among individuals with OUD with vs without cooccurring SUD and to assess the comparative effectiveness associated with buprenorphine and naltrexone against drug-related poisonings. Design, Setting, and Participants: This observational comparative effectiveness study used insurance claims from 2011 to 2016 from the US IBM MarketScan databases to study initiation of medications for OUD (MOUD) among treatment-seeking individuals aged 12 to 64 years with a primary diagnosis of OUD. Cooccurring SUD was defined as SUD diagnosed concurrent with or in the 6 months prior to OUD treatment initiation. Treatment was codified as psychosocial treatment without MOUD or initiation or buprenorphine or naltrexone (including extended-release or oral). Methadone recipients were excluded from analysis. Data were analyzed from February 3, 2021, through February 26, 2022. Exposures: MOUD. Main Outcomes and Measures: Associations between cooccurring SUD diagnoses with treatment type were assessed with multivariable regression. The association of drug-related poisoning admissions with days covered with buprenorphine or naltrexone prescriptions vs days without prescriptions was assessed among MOUD initiators. Odds ratios from within-person fixed effects models were estimated as a function of MOUD and stratified by cooccurring SUDs. Results: Among 179 280 individuals with OUD (mean [SD] age, 33.2 [11.0] years; 90 196 [50.5%] men), 102 930 (57.4%) received psychosocial treatment without MOUD. Across 47 488 individuals with cooccurring SUDs, 33 449 (70.4%) did not receive MOUD, whereas across 131 792 individuals without cooccurring SUDs, 69 481 (52.7%) did not receive MOUD. Cooccurring SUD was associated with decreased odds of initiating buprenorphine (risk ratio [RR], 0.55 [95% CI, 0.54-0.56]) but increased odds of initiating naltrexone (extended release: RR, 1.12 [95% CI, 1.05-1.20]; oral: RR, 1.95 [95% CI, 1.86-2.03]). Among 12 485 individuals initiating MOUD who experienced at least 1 drug-related poisoning during insurance enrollment, buprenorphine treatment days were associated with decreased poisonings compared with days without MOUD for individuals with cooccurring SUD (odds ratio [OR], 0.56 [95% CI, 0.48-0.65]) and individuals without cooccurring SUD (OR, 0.57 [95% CI, 0.53-0.63]), with comparable associations observed for extended-release naltrexone. No protective association was observed for oral naltrexone. Conclusions and Relevance: These findings suggest that individuals with OUD and polysubstance use were less likely to initiate buprenorphine and naltrexone than individuals without polysubstance use. Among individuals initiating MOUD, polysubstance use was associated with decreased buprenorphine and increased naltrexone initiation, despite buprenorphine's protective associations against drug-related poisoning.

Association Between Workplace Absenteeism and Alcohol Use Disorder From the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2015-2019.

Importance: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is common and associated with increased morbidity. The degree to which AUD currently factors into workplace absenteeism needs further characterization in the US. Objective: To examine the association between AUD and workplace absenteeism in a nationally representative sample. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional study used data from a nationally representative sample of noninstitutionalized US residents from the 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health to examine the association of AUD with workplace absenteeism. Eligible respondents were aged 18 years and older who reported full-time employment. Data were analyzed from March to September 2021. Main Outcomes and Measures: Primary outcomes were markers of workplace absenteeism as defined by the number of days missed from work because of illness or injury and days skipped from work in the last 30 days. Descriptive statistics, prevalence ratios, and logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the association between AUD and absenteeism. Results: A total of 110 701 adults aged 18 years and older reported current full-time employment (58 948 [53.2%] men, 51 753 [46.8%] women; 12 776 [11.5%] Black, 18 096 [16.3%] Hispanic, and 69 506 [62.8%] White respondents). Weighted prevalence of AUD in this sample of working adults was 9.3% (95% CI, 9.0%-9.5%); 6.2% (95% CI, 6.0%-6.4%) of respondents met criteria for mild AUD, 1.9% (95% CI, 1.7%-2.0%) for moderate AUD, and 1.2% (95% CI, 1.1%-1.3%) for severe AUD. Mean days missed from work annually increased in a stepwise fashion with increasing AUD severity (no AUD, 13.0 days; 95% CI, 12.7-13.2 days; mild AUD, 17.7 days; 95% CI, 16.4-19.1 days; moderate AUD, 23.6 days; 95% CI, 21.5-25.7 days; severe AUD, 32.3 days; 95% CI, 27.5-37.0 days). People with AUD represented 9.3% of the full-time workforce and contributed to 14.1% of total reported workplace absences. Conclusions and Relevance: In this cross-sectional study, AUD was disproportionately associated with an increased prevalence of workplace absenteeism, with individuals with AUD contributing over 232 million missed workdays annually. These results provide economic incentive for increased investment in AUD prevention and treatment, both for employers and policy makers.

An examination between treatment type and treatment retention in persons with opioid and co-occurring alcohol use disorders.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Persons with opioid use disorder (OUD) and co-occurring alcohol use disorder (AUD) are understudied. We identified whether co-occurring AUD was associated with OUD treatment type, compared associations between treatment type and six-month treatment retention and determined whether co-occurring AUD moderated these relationships. METHODS: We used an observational cohort study design to analyze insurance claims data from 2011 to 2016 from persons aged 12-64 with an opioid abuse or opioid dependence diagnosis and OUD treatment claim. Our unit of analysis was the treatment episode; we used logistic regression for analyses. RESULTS: Of 211,047 treatment episodes analyzed, 14 % had co-occurring alcohol abuse or dependence diagnoses. Among persons with opioid dependence, persons with co-occurring alcohol dependence were 25 % less likely to receive medication treatment relative to those without AUD. Further, alcohol dependence was associated with decreased likelihood of treatment with buprenorphine (AOR 0.47, 95 % CI 0.44-0.49) or methadone (AOR 0.31, 95 % CI 0.28-0.35) and increased likelihood of treatment with extended-release (AOR 1.36, 95 % CI 1.21-1.54) or oral (AOR 1.73, 95 % CI 1.57-1.90) naltrexone relative to psychosocial treatment. Buprenorphine and methadone were associated with highest retention prevalence regardless of OUD or AUD severity. Co-occurring alcohol abuse or dependence did not meaningfully change retention prevalence associated with buprenorphine or methadone. Co-occurring AUD was not associated with improved retention among persons receiving either formulation of naltrexone. CONCLUSIONS: Buprenorphine and methadone are associated with relatively high likelihood of treatment retention among persons opioid and alcohol dependence, but are disproportionately under-prescribed.

A cascade of care for alcohol use disorder: Using 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data to identify gaps in past 12-month care.

BACKGROUND: Although effective treatments exist, alcohol use disorder (AUD) is undertreated. We used a cascade of care framework to understand gaps in care for persons with AUD. METHODS: Using 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data, we evaluated the following steps in the cascade of care: (1) adult prevalence of AUD; (2) proportion of adults with AUD who utilized health care in the past 12 months; (3) proportion with AUD screened about their alcohol use; (4) proportion with AUD who received a brief intervention about their alcohol misuse; (5) proportion with AUD who received information about treatment for alcohol misuse; and (6) proportion with AUD who received treatment. Analyses were stratified by AUD severity. RESULTS: Of the 214,505 persons included in the sample, the weighted prevalence of AUD was 7.8% (95% CI 7.6-8.0%). Cascades of care showed the majority of individuals with AUD utilized health care in the past 12 months [81.4% (95% CI 80.7-82.1%)] and were screened about alcohol use [69.9% (95% CI 68.9-70.8%)]. However, only a minority of individuals received subsequent steps of care, including 11.6% (95% CI 11.0-12.2%) who reported receiving a brief intervention, 5.1% (95% CI 4.6-5.6%) who were referred to treatment, and 5.8% (95% CI 5.4-6.3%) who received treatment. Similar patterns were observed when cascades of care were stratified by AUD severity. CONCLUSIONS: Persons with AUD commonly utilize health care and are often screened about alcohol use, but few receive treatment. Healthcare settings-particularly primary care settings-represent a prime opportunity to implement AUD treatment to improve outcomes in this high-risk population.

Association Between Benzodiazepine or Z-Drug Prescriptions and Drug-Related Poisonings Among Patients Receiving Buprenorphine Maintenance: A Case-Crossover Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Persons with opioid use disorder who take benzodiazepines are at high risk for overdose. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of benzodiazepine and Z-drug use with drug-related poisonings among patients receiving buprenorphine maintenance treatment. METHODS: A case-crossover study design was used to analyze prescription claims among persons ages 12-64 with opioid use disorder who had buprenorphine prescriptions and had claims data in the IBM MarketScan databases (2006-2016), encompassing 14,213,075 person-days of observation time for 23,036 individuals who experienced drug-related poisoning. The exposures were buprenorphine prescriptions and benzodiazepine or Z-drug prescriptions, standardized as daily diazepam-equivalent milligram doses and separated by pharmacologic properties (short-acting or long-acting benzodiazepines, Z-drugs). The outcome of interest was nonfatal drug-related poisoning. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate variation in benzodiazepine or Z-drug and buprenorphine use between poisoning and nonpoisoning days. RESULTS: Buprenorphine treatment days were associated with a nearly 40% reduction in the risk of poisoning events (odds ratio=0.63, 95% CI=0.60, 0.66) compared with nontreatment days, whereas benzodiazepine or Z-drug treatment days were associated with an 88% increase in the risk of such events (95% CI=1.78, 1.98). In stratified analyses by dose, we observed a 78% (95% CI=1.67, 1.88) and 122% (95% CI=2.03, 2.43) increase in poisonings associated with low-dose and high-dose benzodiazepine or Z-drug treatment days, respectively. High-dose, but not low-dose, benzodiazepine or Z-drug treatment was associated with increased poisonings in combination with buprenorphine cotreatment (odds ratio=1.64, 95% CI=1.39, 1.93), but this was lower than the odds risk associated with benzodiazepine or Z-drug treatment in the absence of buprenorphine (low-dose: odds ratio=1.69, 95% CI=1.60, 1.79; high-dose: odds ratio=2.23, 95% CI=2.04, 2.45). CONCLUSIONS: Increased risk of nonfatal drug-related poisoning is associated with benzodiazepine or Z-drug treatment in patients with opioid use disorder, but this risk is partially mitigated by buprenorphine treatment. Dose reduction of benzodiazepines or Z-drugs while maintaining buprenorphine treatment may provide the advantage of lowering drug-related poisoning risk.

Association of Opioid Use Disorder Treatment With Alcohol-Related Acute Events.

Importance: Persons with opioid use disorder (OUD) and co-occurring alcohol use disorder (AUD) are understudied and undertreated. It is unknown whether the use of medications to treat OUD is associated with reduced risk of alcohol-related morbidity. Objective: To determine whether the use of OUD medications is associated with decreased risk for alcohol-related falls, injuries, and poisonings in persons with OUD with and without co-occurring AUD. Design, Setting, and Participants: This recurrent-event, case-control, cohort study used prescription claims from IBM MarketScan insurance databases from January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2016. The sample included persons aged 12 to 64 years in the US with an OUD diagnosis and taking OUD medication who had at least 1 alcohol-related admission. The unit of observation was person-day. Data analysis was performed from June 26 through September 28, 2020. Exposures: Days of active OUD medication prescriptions, with either agonist (ie, buprenorphine or methadone) or antagonist (ie, oral or extended-release naltrexone) treatments compared with days without OUD prescriptions. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was admission for any acute alcohol-related event defined by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision and International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision codes. Conditional logistic regression was used to compare OUD medication use between days with and without an alcohol-related event. Stratified analyses were conducted between patients with OUD with and without a recent AUD diagnostic code. Results: There were 8 424 214 person-days of observation time among 13 335 participants who received OUD medications and experienced an alcohol-related admission (mean [SD] age, 33.1 [13.1] years; 5884 female participants [44.1%]). Agonist treatments (buprenorphine and methadone) were associated with reductions in the odds of any alcohol-related acute event compared with nontreatment days, with a 43% reduction for buprenorphine (odds ratio [OR], 0.57; 95% CI, 0.52-0.61) and a 66% reduction for methadone (OR, 0.34; 95% CI, 0.26-0.45). The antagonist treatment naltrexone was associated with reductions in alcohol-related acute events compared with nonmedication days, with a 37% reduction for extended-release naltrexone (OR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.52-0.76) and a 16% reduction for oral naltrexone (OR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.76-0.93). Naltrexone use was more prevalent among patients with OUD with recent AUD claims than their peers without AUD claims. Conclusions and Relevance: These findings suggest that OUD medication is associated with fewer admissions for alcohol-related acute events in patients with OUD with co-occurring AUD.

A Cascade of Care for Alcohol Use Disorder: Using 2015-2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health Data to Identify Gaps in Care.

BACKGROUND: Although effective treatments exist, alcohol use disorder (AUD) is undertreated. We used a cascade of care framework to understand gaps in care between diagnosis and treatment for persons with AUD. METHODS: Using 2015-2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data, we evaluated the following steps in the cascade of care: 1) prevalence of adults with AUD; 2) proportion of adults who utilized health care in the past 12 months; 3) were screened about alcohol use; 4) received a brief intervention about alcohol misuse; 5) received information about treatment for alcohol misuse; and 6) proportion of persons with AUD who received treatment. Analyses were stratified by AUD severity. RESULTS: Of the 171,766 persons included in the sample, weighted prevalence of AUD was 7.9% (95% CI 7.7-8.0%). Persons with AUD utilized health care settings at similar rates as those without AUD. Cascades of care showed the majority of individuals with AUD utilized health care and were screened about alcohol use, but the percent who received the subsequent steps of care decreased substantially. For those with severe AUD, 83.5% (CI: 78.3%-88.7%) utilized health care in the past 12 months, 73.5% (CI: 68.1%-78.9%) were screened for alcohol use, 22.7% (CI: 19.4%-26.0%) received a brief intervention, 12.4% (CI: 10%-14.7%) received information about treatment, and 20.5% (CI: 18%-23.1%) were treated for AUD. The greatest decrease in the care continuum occurred from screening to brief intervention and referral to treatment. More persons with severe AUD received treatment than were referred, indicating other pathways to treatment outside of the healthcare system. CONCLUSIONS: Persons with AUD utilize health care at high rates and are frequently screened about alcohol use, but few receive treatment. Health care settings-particularly primary care settings-represent a prime opportunity to implement pharmacologic treatment for AUD to improve outcomes in this high-risk population.

Age disparities in six-month treatment retention for opioid use disorder.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Adolescents with opioid use disorder (OUD) are an understudied and vulnerable population. We examined the association between age and six-month treatment retention, and whether any such association was moderated by medication treatment. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, we used an insurance database with OUD treatment claims from 2006-2016. We examined 261,356 OUD treatment episodes in three age groups: adolescents (ages 12-17), young adults (18-25) and older adults (26-64). We used logistic regression to estimate prevalence of six-month retention before and after stratification by treatment type (buprenorphine, naltrexone, or psychosocial only). Insurance differences (commercial vs Medicaid) in medication treatment prevalence were also assessed. RESULTS: Adolescents were less likely to be retained compared to adults (17.6 %; 95 % CI 16.5-18.7 % for adolescents; 25.1 %; 95 % CI 24.7-25.4 % for young adults; 33.3 %; 95 % CI 33.0-33.5 % for older adults). This disparity was reduced after adjusting for treatment type. For all ages, buprenorphine was more strongly associated with retention than naltrexone or psychosocial treatment. Adolescents who received buprenorphine were more than four times as likely to be retained in treatment (44.8 %; 95 % CI 40.6-49.0) compared to those who received psychosocial services (9.7 %; 95 % CI 8.8-10.8). Persons with commercial insurance were more likely to receive medication than those with Medicaid (73 % vs 36 %, (χ2 = 38,042.6, p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Age disparities in six-month treatment retention are strongly related to age disparities in medication treatment. Results point to need for improved implementation of medication treatment for persons with OUD, regardless of age or insurance status.

Changes in associations of prescription opioid use disorder and illegal behaviors among adults in the United States from 2002 to 20.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: In the United States, the availability of prescription opioids has decreased in recent years. Whether there have been corresponding changes in the likelihood of people with prescription opioid use disorder (POUD) to engage in illegal behaviors related to drug use remains unknown. We examined changes in prevalence of illegal behaviors between people with and without POUD over time, and how transactions for obtaining opioids have changed among people with POUD over time. DESIGN: Temporal trend analysis of repeated cross-sectional data. SETTING: United States household dwelling population from all 50 states and District of Columbia. PARTICIPANTS: Adult subsamples from the 2002-14 National Survey of Drug Use and Health (n = 5393 people with POUD; n = 486 768 people without POUD). MEASUREMENTS: Outcome variables were selected illegal behaviors and sources of opioids used non-medically. POUD was defined using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, criteria. Time was treated as a continuous variable. The variable of interest for each illegal behavior analysis was the interaction between POUD diagnosis and time. Covariates included age, sex and race/ethnicity. FINDINGS: During the 13-year period examined, the adjusted interaction odds ratio (AIOR) describing the change in association between POUD and selling illicit drugs increased by a factor of 2.41 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.56-3.71, P < 0.001]. Similar trends were noted for stealing (AIOR = 2.12, 95% CI = 1.31-3.44, P = 0.002) and for life-time history of arrest (AIOR = 1.53, 95% CI = 1.06-2.19, P = 0.021). People with POUD became less likely to receive opioids for free from friends and family [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.25-0.71, P = 0.001] and more likely to buy them from friends and family (AOR = 3.29, 95% CI = 1.76-6.13, P < 0.001) from 2005 to 2014. CONCLUSIONS: In the United States, against a backdrop of a decreasing prescription opioid supply, rates of some crimes potentially related to drug use increased among people with prescription opioid use disorder compared with those without prescription opioid use disorder from 2002 to 2014.