One of the keys to helping people climb out of opioid addiction is to ensure access to help, including access to buprenorphine, a medication proven to reduce overdose deaths. 

A 2023 federal law called the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act, or MAT Act, helps to do just that by increasing the number of medical professionals who can prescribe the drug from 130,000 to 1.8 million. 

MAT was shepherded through Congress by Albany-area Rep. Paul Tonko, who co-chairs the Addiction, Treatment and Recovery Caucus.

Tonko discussed the MAT Act and New York state’s drug policy with Capital Tonight host Susan Arbetter.