Abstract
Keywords Screening; Brief intervention; Alcohol; Drugs; Substance use disorders; Financing; Reimbursement; Payment; Adolescents Screening and brief intervention (SBI) is an evidence-based, cost-effective practice to address unhealthy substance use. With SBI services expanding beyond healthcare settings (e.g., schools, community organizations) and reaching younger populations, sustainability efforts must consider payment and financing. This narrative review incorporated rapid scoping review methods and a search of the gray literature to determine payment and financing approaches for SBI with adolescents and to describe related barriers and facilitators for its sustainability. We sought information relevant to adolescents and settings in which they receive SBI, but also reviewed sources with an adult focus. Few peer-reviewed articles met inclusion criteria, and those mostly highlighted healthcare settings. School-based settings were better described in the gray literature; little was found about community settings. SBI is mostly paid through grant funding and public and commercial insurance; school-based settings use a range of approaches including grants, public insurance, and other public funding. We call upon researchers and providers to describe the payment and financing of SBI, to inform how the uptake of SBI may be practicable and sustainable. The increasing activation and use of insurance billing codes, and the expansion of SBI beyond healthcare, is encouraging to address unhealthy substance use by adolescents. Author Affiliation: Institute for Behavioral Health, Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts * Address correspondence to: Sharon Reif, Ph.D., Brandeis University, Heller School for Social Policy and Management, MS 035, 415 South Street, Waltham, MA 02453 USA. Article History: Received 26 July 2021; Accepted 27 April 2022 (footnote) Conflicts of interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare. (footnote) Disclaimer: This article was published as part of a supplement supported by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation through a grant to Abt Associates. The opinions or views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the funder. Byline: Sharon Reif, Ph.D. [reif@brandeis.edu] (*), Mary Brolin, Ph.D., Tiginesh M. Beyene, M.A., Nicole D'Agostino, M.P.P., Maureen T. Stewart, Ph.D., Constance M. Horgan, Sc.D.