
Months-Long Shield Against Fentanyl: San Francisco's Breakthrough Addiction Therapy
San Francisco is expanding long-acting injectable buprenorphine to treat fentanyl addiction, a therapy that blocks opioids for weeks and has shown higher retention than daily meds: the city logged about 1,400 injections in 2024 and 2,800 in 2025, with jail programs reporting 43% follow-up after release versus 29% for daily-pill users. While promising, the first dose can cause intense withdrawal if dosing is not precise, and some patients still relapse. Experts view this as a major breakthrough that could widen access beyond SF as research continues.


