Yes, medication works for opioid use disorder

In fact, effective treatment generally requires medication. The “gold standard” of treatment for this disease currently includes prescription medications such as methadone and buprenorphine More are in the pipeline. These medications improve retention in addiction treatment and OUD remission more successfully than any other treatment. A 2019 National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine review of the literature on treatment of OUD found that methadone or buprenorphine therapy was associated with a 50% reduction in fatal overdoses.