The effect of a jail methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) program on inmate recidivism.

AIMS: To evaluate the effects of a jail-based continuation of methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) on subsequent inmate recidivism risks.

DESIGN

Prospective, longitudinal, observational study.

SETTING

A large, Southwestern United States jail that continues MMT for heroin-addicted inmates on MMT at the time of booking.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 589 inmates booked between 22 November 2005 (the start date for the MMT program) and 31 October 2006.

MEASUREMENTS: The outcome measure was time from release to subsequent re-booking in the jail. Predictors included binary dosing with methadone in the jail, final dose received (mg), age, gender, race/ethnicity, previous bookings and days in jail.

FINDINGS AND

CONCLUSIONS

Random effects Weibull proportional hazards models were fit to the recidivism times to estimate the impact of treatment with MMT in the jail on re-booking risks. There was no statistically significant effect of receiving methadone in the jail or dosage on subsequent recidivism risks (hazard ratio = 1.16; 95% confidence interval = 0.8-1.68). Offering jail-based MMT does not increase recidivism risks by eliminating the deterrent effect of imposed withdrawal, nor does it reduce recidivism in this high-risk population.