Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42397607›Full record

ArticleJournal of racial and ethnic health disparities2026

"In My Community, if You're an Addict, People Don't Just Look Down on You for the Drugs, but for Being Black, Too": Black and Latine Methadone Patients' Experiences Around Addiction, Methadone Treatment, and Intersectional Stigma.

A M Ward, T Wood, D Gerke, S Walters, J Williams, D Clement, M Katundu, D Ferguson, K Morrison, Y Alnashri and 2 more

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Article in Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

A M WardFrank H. Netter School of Medicine, Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT, USA.
T WoodDepartment of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
D GerkeDepartment of Social Work, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
S WaltersDepartment of Population Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
J WilliamsKansas City University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Kansas City, MO, USA.
D ClementBoston Medical Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
M KatunduDepartment of Family and Community Medicine, Heersink School of Medicine, Community Health Services Bldg, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 930 20th St S, Birmingham, AL, 35233, USA.
D FergusonDepartment of Sociology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
K MorrisonDepartment of Sociology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
Y AlnashriDepartment of Health Policy and Organization, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
B GrinDepartment of Primary Care, Kansas City University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Kansas City, MO, USA.
J JaiswalCenter for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA), Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA. jessicajaiswal@uabmc.edu.

Funding

BEHAVIORAL SCI TRAINING IN DRUG ABUSE RESEARCHT32DA007233 · NIDA · PUBLIC HEALTH SOLUTIONS · PI GOLDSAMT, LLOYD A · 1985 to 2023
$20.2M
NIDA NIH HHS 5P30 DA01104123NIDA NIH HHS T32DA007233
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundStigma surrounding opioid use disorder (OUD) and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), such as methadone, remains a significant barrier to care, despite the effectiveness of MOUD. Intersectional stigma tied to addiction, methadone treatment, structural racism, and classism disproportionately affects minoritized people with OUD, with direct consequences for health and wellbeing. Less is known about how Black and Latine people in methadone treatment think about and experience various dimensions of stigma related to addiction and the social determinants of health.

methodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with Black and Latine patients from two Newark, NJ, United States, methadone clinics (n = 37). Participant experiences and perceptions around SUD, MOUD, and stigma were explored. Participant transcripts were thematically coded to identify recurring themes and perspectives.

resultsThree major themes emerged: First, participants rejected views of addiction as a choice or moral failing, instead framing addiction as a chronic disease shaped by environment, trauma, and social pressure. Second, participants framed methadone as a legitimate, recovery-facilitating medical treatment, directly challenging the stigma that reduces it to a mere substitute. Third, participants emphasized that intersectional stigma related to substance use, structural racism, and classism significantly harmed their care, particularly noting resource deficits that disproportionately neglect Black and Latine communities.

conclusionsReducing structural stigma is critical to improving access to MOUD for populations affected by structural inequity. Institutional efforts to reduce stigma and expand low-threshold programs are critical to expanding MOUD access and uptake. Intentional efforts to build trust with minoritized populations are essential to advance equity and can be achieved by acknowledging and addressing the structural drivers that shape people's daily lived experiences.

Identifiers

PMID42397607

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.