Digital mental health company Cerebral is launching a new program aimed at treating opioid use disorder.

The startup said users will work with "licensed prescribers" to build treatment plans, including ones employing medications like Suboxone, which was developed to manage withdrawals and prevent overdoses. Members who join the program can also access virtual counseling sessions.

The program is now available in Florida and will expand to other states in the coming months.

"As reports have consistently shown, opioid misuse continues to grow and now, more than ever, people need access to high-quality care that can address not just the symptoms, but the causes of these serious issues," Cerebral Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Mou said in a statement.

"That’s one of the many reasons we wanted to begin offering this service – to leverage our platform to treat each person comprehensively and get them to successfully live without addiction."

WHY IT MATTERS

The COVID-19 pandemic may have worsened an already dire opioid epidemic in the U.S. According to CDC provisional data released in November, there were more than 100,000 overdose deaths in the U.S. during the year ending April 2021.

The estimated overdose deaths from opioids rose to more than 75,000 compared to more than 56,000 the year before. 

THE LARGER TREND

Virtual mental healthcare is a booming clinical area within the larger digital health space, and Cerebral is no exception. In December, the startup announced it had scored $300 million in equity funding, bringing the company's total raise to $462 million. 

However, Cerebral has faced negative press in the months following its huge funding round. A recent investigation by Bloomberg Businessweek reported employees had too many patients on their plates and prescriptions were pushed too aggressively at the expense of patient care. 

Forbes has also reported on Cerebral Instagram ads that were pulled because they violated the social media platform's body image and eating disorder policies; customer reports on difficulties receiving refunds from the startup; and workers who were switched from salary to contract status, risking their medical, vision and dental benefits.

Cerebral isn't alone in the digital opioid treatment space. Ophelia, which is also focused on providing medication-assisted treatment options, announced it had raised $50 million in December. In October, Workit Health raised $118 million in Series C funding for its virtual substance use disorder and addiction care offerings.

Pear Therapeutics, which recently went public, makes an FDA-cleared prescription digital therapeutic called reSET-O for opioid use disorder.