According to SAMHSA’s 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, fewer than 25% of adults with opioid use disorder received any medication-assisted treatment in the past year. If you’re searching for a Brixadi shot near you, you’ve already cleared the hardest hurdle: deciding to look. This guide covers exactly what Brixadi is, how it compares to other options, who qualifies, and how to find a provider in Maryland who offers it.
What Brixadi Actually Is (and Why It’s Different)
A 2020 meta-analysis published in The Lancet reviewed 50 randomized trials and found that buprenorphine-based treatment reduces illicit opioid use and overdose mortality more effectively than no medication. Brixadi is one of the newest delivery methods for buprenorphine, and the form matters as much as the medication itself.
Brixadi is an extended-release injectable form of buprenorphine. Instead of dissolving a film under your tongue each morning or swallowing a tablet, you receive a subcutaneous injection administered by a provider in the office. The medication releases steadily over days or weeks, which keeps buprenorphine levels consistent in your system without the peaks and troughs that come with daily dosing. It is FDA-approved for moderate-to-severe opioid use disorder in adults.
If you’ve only heard of Suboxone or methadone, the distinction is worth understanding clearly. Suboxone is a daily sublingual film containing buprenorphine and naloxone. Methadone is a full opioid agonist dispensed daily at certified clinics. Brixadi is neither. It’s buprenorphine delivered as a timed-release injection, handled entirely in a provider’s office, with no medication to manage at home. Knowing this difference helps you ask the right question when you call a clinic: not just “do you offer buprenorphine” but “do you offer the injectable form.”
How Brixadi Compares to Other MAT Options
A 2023 study published in JAMA Network Open followed 6,000 patients across multiple MAT formulations and found that patients on injectable buprenorphine had significantly higher 12-month treatment retention rates compared to those on daily sublingual formulations, with lower rates of medication diversion. That gap in retention is worth taking seriously because staying in treatment is the most reliable predictor of long-term recovery.
The three options you’re most likely to encounter when exploring medication-assisted treatment in Maryland are daily buprenorphine films or tablets, Sublocade (a once-monthly injectable buprenorphine), and Brixadi. Sublocade and Brixadi are both injectable buprenorphine products, but they differ in one practical way: Brixadi offers both weekly and monthly dosing schedules. That flexibility is meaningful. For someone early in recovery who benefits from more frequent clinical contact, a weekly injection creates a built-in touchpoint with the care team. For someone who has stabilized and wants less disruption to daily life, monthly dosing fits that stage better.
The other practical advantage is the elimination of take-home medication. Diversion risk drops to zero when there’s nothing to divert, and the social stigma of carrying daily medication disappears.
If daily medication feels unmanageable or you’re concerned about the visibility of carrying sublingual strips, understanding how a weekly buprenorphine injection works can reframe what treatment actually looks like day-to-day. Ask any provider you contact which schedule, weekly or monthly, fits where you are in your recovery right now.
Weekly vs. Monthly Dosing: What the Schedule Looks Like
Weekly Brixadi is typically used at the start of treatment. Monthly dosing becomes an option once a patient has stabilized, and many patients transition to the monthly schedule over time. The injection itself is a short office visit: a provider administers a subcutaneous injection, usually in the abdomen or upper arm, and you leave without any take-home medication to track or store.
For someone early in recovery, the more frequent contact of a weekly appointment is often a clinical advantage. You’re checking in with a prescriber or care team every seven days, which creates more opportunities to address side effects, adjust support, or identify early warning signs. More contact is not a burden at that stage. It’s a built-in structure.
Who Qualifies for Brixadi Treatment
SAMHSA’s 2023 Treatment Improvement Protocol specifies that injectable extended-release buprenorphine is appropriate for adults with a confirmed diagnosis of moderate-to-severe opioid use disorder who have been medically evaluated by a licensed prescriber. In most cases, a brief stabilization period on sublingual buprenorphine is required before the first injection, allowing the prescriber to confirm tolerability and determine the appropriate dose.
Maryland Medicaid covers Brixadi for eligible patients. Commercial insurance plans, including most major carriers, also cover FDA-approved MAT, though prior authorization requirements vary by plan. For patients without coverage, options include sliding-scale fees, manufacturer patient assistance programs, and state-funded treatment slots through Maryland’s behavioral health system.
Before calling a clinic, gather your insurance card or Medicaid information so the intake team can confirm coverage on the first call. That single step prevents the most common delay people encounter when trying to start treatment.
What to Expect at Your First Appointment
The first appointment is primarily an evaluation, not an injection. The provider will review your opioid use history, current physical health, and any co-occurring mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, or PTSD. Co-occurring conditions are common among people seeking treatment and do not disqualify anyone. Many practices that offer Brixadi address both substance use and mental health as part of the same program, which you can read more about when reviewing what a full Brixadi program includes.
The prescriber will assess stabilization status before scheduling the first injection. Arriving with a clear account of your opioid use history, including substances used, frequency, and date of last use, speeds that evaluation considerably. The faster the clinical picture becomes clear, the faster you reach the injection.
How to Find a Brixadi Provider in Maryland
SAMHSA’s 2023 national data shows that only about one in three buprenorphine-waivered providers offers injectable formulations. That gap matters when you’re searching “brixadi shot near me” and getting a mix of general MAT clinics, telehealth directories, and specialty practices. Not every clinic that prescribes buprenorphine administers the injectable form.
The filter is simple. When you call a clinic, ask two questions: “Do you offer injectable buprenorphine?” and “Do you accept Maryland Medicaid?” Those two questions cut through most of the noise immediately. For a more detailed breakdown of how to locate the right clinic without wasted calls, the process is straightforward once you know what to ask.
Call two or three clinics this week using those two questions before committing to any intake appointment.
Maryland Locations Where Brixadi Is Available
Access to injectable buprenorphine in Maryland is concentrated in the Baltimore metro area but extends across the state. Locations in Baltimore City, College Park, Linthicum Heights, Nottingham, and Owings Mills serve patients from across central Maryland and the surrounding counties, which matters for anyone facing transportation barriers or living outside a major urban center.
For patients who want a fuller picture of where injectable buprenorphine is available statewide, geographic spread is worth factoring into your search from the start. If the nearest location isn’t convenient, ask whether the practice offers telehealth follow-up after the initial in-person evaluation. Many do, which reduces the total number of in-person trips required once treatment is underway.
Insurance, Medicaid, and Cost Realities
A 2023 report from the Maryland Department of Health found that insurance-related barriers remain among the top reasons patients delay or avoid entering MAT programs. The good news for Maryland patients is that Brixadi is covered under Maryland Medicaid for those who qualify. For commercially insured patients, most major plans cover FDA-approved MAT formulations, but prior authorization is common and the approval timeline varies.
For patients without coverage, the path isn’t closed. Sliding-scale payment options, manufacturer patient assistance programs for brand-name injectables, and state-funded behavioral health slots are all real options. The key is asking directly: clinics that offer Brixadi regularly navigate these pathways for patients.
The most practical step you can take is calling the clinic’s billing department separately from the clinical intake line. Ask specifically whether Brixadi is covered under your plan and whether prior authorization is required. That single call eliminates the most frequent delay between deciding to start treatment and actually receiving the first injection.
What to Do This Week
Call one Maryland-based clinic that offers Brixadi. Ask two questions: whether they administer the injectable and whether they accept your insurance or Medicaid. That is the only step that matters right now. The evaluation, the dosing schedule, the insurance paperwork, all of it follows from that first call. One clinic, two questions, this week.