Opioid Treatment in 2026: Telehealth Won, But a New Tension Is Growing

Substance Spotlight — Opioids

Each Thursday, the Rize Newsroom publishes a Substance Spotlight examining one substance class through a specific lens. Today: opioids through the lens of treatment access and policy.

The Telehealth Win

January 2026 brought a consequential victory for opioid use disorder treatment access. DEA and HHS jointly issued a final rule permanently extending the buprenorphine telemedicine prescribing flexibility that had been operating on temporary extensions since the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Patients can now receive buprenorphine via audio-video or audio-only telehealth encounters without ever having an in-person evaluation with the prescribing provider, for up to a 6-month supply. Audio-only access is particularly important for people in rural areas or without reliable broadband, who are disproportionately represented among the 85% of Americans with substance use disorder who currently receive no treatment.

The New Tension

At almost the same moment, SAMHSA issued guidance warning against providing medications for opioid use disorder — specifically naming methadone and buprenorphine — without accompanying psychosocial counseling and “recovery support services.”

This guidance is medically contested. The clinical consensus has moved toward “low-threshold” MAT models that prioritize medication access without requiring counseling as a prerequisite, because counseling requirements create barriers that prevent people from initiating treatment at all. The new guidance doesn’t prohibit MAT without counseling, but language warning against it from the federal agency responsible for addiction treatment standards has real effects on practice.

What This Means in Arizona

Fewer than 1 in 20 Arizonans with opioid use disorder currently receive medications like buprenorphine or methadone — making Arizona one of the nation’s lowest-access states for evidence-based OUD treatment, even with AHCCCS covering most treatment costs for those who qualify.

Maricopa County is actively using its opioid settlement funds to expand MAT in jails — starting people on MOUD during incarceration and bridging them to community providers on release. The first round of naloxone from Arizona’s Hikma Settlement allocation — 6,599 units — arrives in September 2026.

Why This Matters for People in Recovery

If you or a loved one is seeking buprenorphine treatment in Arizona, you can access it via telehealth from a licensed provider without an in-person visit. Rize’s treatment matching tool can connect you with AHCCCS-accepting providers offering telehealth MAT. SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-4357 (free, confidential, 24/7).