Community-delivered buprenorphine for people experiencing homelessness or living in supportive housing
Official title: CE25-149 - Rigorous Evaluation of Community-Delivered Short- and Long-Acting Buprenorphine to People who Experience Homelessness or Live at Permanent Supportive Housing Sites
Funded at Seattle-King County Public Health Dept · NIH-11422048 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A program to deliver buprenorphine, including long-acting injections, directly at encampments, shelters, and supportive housing to reduce overdose risk for people who experience homelessness.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Seattle-King County Public Health Dept NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Seattle, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2025 |
| Project end | September 29, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $350,000 |
| NIH project number | 5U01CE003820-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11422048 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults who experience homelessness or live in permanent supportive housing and are eligible for buprenorphine treatment.
✕Less likely to help
People not seeking MOUD or those outside the targeted settings may not experience direct benefit.
What this research studies
If you are homeless or live in supportive housing, this program tests whether getting buprenorphine where you are—at shelters or encampments and through telemedicine—helps prevent overdoses. Nurses will bring medications from a central pharmacy and administer them in the field, using a specific study design to compare outcomes before and after the program. The goal is to see if this community-based approach lowers overdose risk and improves health in a real-world setting. The study uses established methods to evaluate both the impact on individuals and the reach of the program across housing sites.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could make MOUD easier to access and reduce overdose deaths for PEH and residents of PSH.
How similar studies have gone: Similar community-based MOUD delivery efforts have shown promise in improving access and outcomes in related populations, with mixed but encouraging results.
Where this research is happening
-
Seattle-King County Public Health Dept
Seattle, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hood, Julia Elizabeth — Seattle-King County Public Health Dept
- Study coordinator: Hood, Julia Elizabeth
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.