Substance Use Research Needs Human-Based Approaches

Physicians Committee experts urged the National Institutes of Health to phase out the use of nonhuman primates in substance use disorder research and prioritize human-based approaches. The institutes involved are the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Substance Use Research Needs Human-Based Approaches Physicians Committee experts urged the National Institutes of Health to phase out the use of nonhuman primates in substance use disorder research and prioritise human-based approaches. The institutes involved are the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Approximately fifty million Americans live with significant impairments or distress because of their substance use. Myriad biological, genetic, environmental, and social factors contribute to substance use disorder risk, onset, and outcomes, including brain chemistry, peer and familial relationships, socioeconomic status, and early life stress, factors that are often difficult, if not impossible, to model using animals. Despite these limitations, animals are frequently used in substance use research, even to investigate questions that have already been answered using human-based methods. For example, across multiple studies and over several years, researchers at the Oregon National Primate Research Center have dosed monkeys with large quantities of alcohol and THC to investigate topics that already have a wealth of findings from human-based experiments. In comments to NIDA and NIAAA, Physicians Committee experts reiterated concerns they have expressed in official complaints to Oregon Health & Sciences University, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the NIH. They recommended phasing out nonhuman primate use and prioritising human-based methods and human clinical research. To support a transition away from animal use, the institutes should: support human-based training, education, infrastructure, and resource accessibility; advance data science and AI for human-based research; implement new measures to minimise duplicative projects and those that lack human relevance; and collaborate with healthcare providers that specialise in treating substance use disorders and addiction. Since President Donald Trump issued a July 2025 executive order aimed at "ending crime and disorder on America's streets," national attention has increasingly focused on involuntary treatment as a response to visible homelessness and drug use. Officials in Utah announced plans for a 16-acre facility on the edge of Salt Lake City that would hold up to 1,300 people experiencing homelessness after they are removed from public spaces and offered a choice between the facility's abstinence-based shelter or jail time. The facility also plans to include 300 to 400 beds reserved for involuntary treatment for adults who have psychiatric and substance use disorders. Supporters of this facility describe it as a humane alternative to the streets, while detractors liken it to prison. Since the executive order, other proposals for expanding involuntary treatment for adults with substance use disorder have been cropping up across the U.S., including in New Jersey, Washington state and New York state. Involuntary treatment for adults with substance use disorder is necessary in extreme cases, but it does not outperform voluntary care and raises serious concerns about patient safety. Heightened risk of relapse, rearrest and death is documented after release from treatment. One international research study showed that risk of death increases two- to nearly fourfold in the weeks following release, primarily due to overdose. As of early 2026, 37 states and the District of Columbia have laws allowing involuntary treatment for substance use disorder, with most having added new and expanded civil commitment statutes in just the past 10 years.

Read source: Physicians Committee