BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A powerful opioid treatment program developed at the University at Buffalo is going statewide.
The program, Buffalo MATTERS, was established by UB emergency medicine physicians to expedite patient access to comprehensive and effective opioid disorder treatment. It provides medication-assisted treatment to opioid use disorder patients in emergency departments and transitions them into long-term treatment at a community clinic of their own choosing within 24-48 hours.
About 150 patients have used the program. It is believed to be one of the contributing factors to the decline in opioid-related deaths in Erie County. in 2016, 301 people died from opioids. That number dropped to 186 in 2018.
Buffalo MATTERS is available through the emergency departments of 17 hospitals throughout all eight counties of Western New York but it is ready to expand. Support from the state will allow Buffalo MATTERS to be implemented in hospitals in the Albany, Hudson and New York City areas.
