The ongoing 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has disrupted care provision for patients with pain disorders, as well as those with opioid use disorder. As a result, public health experts have voiced concern that the COVID-19 pandemic may worsen the opioid crisis in the United States, and the populations affected most seriously by both crises may overlap significantly.1-3 For patients receiving treatment for addiction, access to support systems, clean needles, methadone provision, and psychiatric care may be seriously interrupted or shifted to virtual platforms.1 Furthermore, the risk of overdose may be increased during prolonged periods of heightened anxiety and isolation from...
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