• Tobacco use rates among patients in opioid use recovery are remarkably high (75%-95%).

• Tobacco use harms everyone, but people who use opioids face added risks, like worsened pain and poorer treatment outcomes.

• Pain is a key driver in the relationship between tobacco use and opioid addiction; pain increases tobacco urges, while tobacco use worsens pain, creating a cycle between pain intensity and tobacco cravings.

This highlights the need to build the capacity of opioid treatment centers to implement tailored tobacco treatment interventions that support patients in taking steps towards a tobacco-free life. 

In PP260002, we will scale up OUTPACE Tobacco (Opioid Use Treatment Programs Advancing Cessation Efforts) by implementing the program in 10 additional opioid treatment centers across Texas over 3 years. OUTPACE Tobacco provides comprehensive support to help opioid treatment centers create tobacco-free workplaces and enhance their capacity to address tobacco use. Support includes staff education, specialized training, tobacco-free workplace policy guidance, health promotion materials, and sustainability recommendations. This builds on our previous work through PP170070 and PP230078, in which we partnered with a total of 8 opioid treatment centers.

Counties Served by OUTPACE Tobacco Partners: Opioid Treatment Centers