Telemedicine Patients with Opioid Use Disorder Experience Issues Filling Prescriptions

A study published in JAMA Network Open examined pharmacy barriers faced by patients prescribed buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder (OUD) through telemedicine. The findings show that pharmacy-related challenges were common, with nearly one-third of study participants (31.9%) reporting going without buprenorphine at some point in the prior 12 months due to pharmacy-related barriers.

Researchers surveyed 601 adults who were receiving treatment from a multistate telemedicine practice across five states: Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, and Texas. Survey questions captured self-reported pharmacy experiences over the prior 12 months, including the frequency and type of fill problems, the number of days without buprenorphine due to barriers, and patient perspectives on delivery alternatives. The participants had an average age of 41, and about half lived in rural areas. More than 80% had been in OUD treatment for six months or longer.

Key Findings

• Nearly one-third of participants (31.9%) reported having to go without buprenorphine due to pharmacy-related barriers in the past 12 months.

  
  

  • Within this group, one-quarter (25%) went seven or more days without access to medication.

• More than one-quarter of all participants (27.5%) experienced at least one problem filling a buprenorphine prescription. Among these patients, the most common issues included:

  
  

  • Pharmacies not having sufficient stock and needing to order the medication (54.5%).

    
    

  • Insurance-related complications such as prior authorization requirements or lack of coverage (22.4%).

    
    

  • Pharmacists' hesitancy to fill a prescription from a telemedicine provider (19.4%).

    
    

• Barriers were consistent across rural and non-rural settings, but varied by state: patients in Florida reported the highest rates of problems, while those in Ohio reported the lowest.

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The Article

Hendy, L. E., Hill, L. G., Olguin, A., Barrett, E., Jimes, C., Coffey, M. J., & Lira, M. C. (2025). Pharmacy Barriers to Receiving Buprenorphine Among Patients Undergoing Telemedicine Addiction Treatment. JAMA network open, 8(8), e2527418. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.27418