ArticleIndian journal of psychiatry2026
A cost-minimization analysis of telemedicine vs standard induction for buprenorphine: Evidence from a randomized clinical trial in India.
Article in Indian journal of psychiatry, 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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Abstract
Background: In-person buprenorphine induction poses substantial cost and access barriers in India's opioid agonist treatment programs, while telemedicine-assisted induction may offer a scalable, lower-cost alternative. Aim: To compare the societal costs of telemedicine-assisted buprenorphine induction (TABI) with standard care (SOC), while evaluating treatment retention and quality-of-life (QoL) outcomes. Methods: An economic evaluation was embedded within a randomized controlled trial at a tertiary addiction treatment center, adopting a societal perspective. Health-system costs were estimated using a mixed top-down/bottom-up micro-costing approach for all participants ( Results: Mean health-system cost per induction was INR 3,545 (USD 42.26) for SOC vs INR 2,690 (USD 32.06) for TABI (24% lower). In the out-of-pocket expenditure (OOP) sub-sample, mean direct patient costs were INR 1,857 (USD 22.13) for SOC vs INR 776 (USD 9.24) for TABI ( Conclusion: Compared with standard induction, TABI substantially reduces health-system and patient costs, while maintaining comparable short-term retention and QoL.
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