Suboxone®, Sublocade®, Brixadi®, and Vivitrol® are well-studied medications that treat both opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder so the rest of your life can grow back. We prescribe, we monitor, and we pair them with weekly therapy and case management. All in one place, under one team.
MAT consists of two things working together: medication that treats addiction, and therapy and case management that let you rebuild your life. The medication keeps cravings and withdrawal from running the day. Your therapist, your medical provider, and your case manager work with you on the rest.
Buprenorphine is the active ingredient in Suboxone®, Subutex®, Sublocade®, and Brixadi®. It works on the same brain receptors as opioids like oxycodone or heroin, but it caps out at a safe level instead of climbing higher. Doctors call that a partial agonist with a ceiling effect. The cap is what eases withdrawal and cravings without producing the high a person can chase, and it’s what makes the medication dramatically safer than the alternatives. Naltrexone, delivered monthly as Vivitrol®, works a different way. It blocks the receptors entirely, so opioids and alcohol don’t feel rewarding.
Enso is MARR-certified (Maine Association of Recovery Residences) and operates outpatient clinics in Augusta and Sanford. Our medical providers write the scripts. Our licensed therapists hold the weekly sessions. Our case managers handle the practical work around identification, housing, and benefits. One team, under one roof, with one plan.
The American Medical Association, the American Society of Addiction Medicine, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse all classify MAT as the standard of care for opioid use disorder. The evidence on retention, overdose prevention, and long-term recovery is consistent across decades of research.
About 40% of our MAT clients are on a long-acting injectable. This is by design. Injectables eliminate the daily decision, ease shared-living situations, and remove pill bottles from sight.
The most common starting point for MAT. Suboxone combines buprenorphine with naloxone, which makes misuse far less likely. You take it as a film or tablet that dissolves under the tongue. For pregnant clients we use Subutex, which is buprenorphine only.
One appointment a month instead of a daily routine. Sublocade is a subcutaneous injection we administer in clinic. It releases buprenorphine steadily for 28 to 30 days, so you are not thinking about medication between visits. Usually started once a client is stable on daily Suboxone.
A newer long-acting option. Brixadi comes in weekly or monthly doses and can be started earlier in induction than Sublocade, which requires a day or two of stabilization on oral buprenorphine first. Useful when we want to get a client onto a long-acting shot without the delay.
For people who have already detoxed or who are primarily managing alcohol use disorder. Vivitrol blocks opioid and alcohol receptors. It is not an opioid, and it must be preceded by 7 to 10 days opioid-free before the first dose.
You don’t have to hit bottom first and you don’t have to have insurance figured out.
You’re dealing with opioid use disorder and want to stop.
You’ve tried to stop on your own or through short-term detox and it has not held.
You’re coming back from county jail and need continuity of medication on the outside.
You have MaineCare, Medicare, private insurance, or no insurance at all.
A family member, referring provider, or court pushed you toward treatment.
You’ve felt discharged from another program on somebody else’s timeline.
You’ve used Suboxone® on the street and want a medically managed prescription.
You want to rebuild work, housing, and family without withdrawal running the day.
From your first call to your first dose, we move as fast as medical safety allows.
Admissions answers Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. After hours, we call you back the next business day. No triage questions, no screening call, no waiting list.
We verify MaineCare, Medicare, or private coverage. If you have none, we connect you with OHH or STR funding or set a sliding fee. Nobody is turned away for financial reasons.
Medical intake, full history, labs if needed, and a treatment plan built around what you can realistically sustain. You meet your therapist and case manager the same visit.
Buprenorphine, a long-acting injectable, or Vivitrol®, based on the intake and what you are comfortable with. Weekly check-ins begin immediately and taper down as you stabilize.
MaineCare (Maine’s Medicaid program) covers medication-assisted treatment in full, including long-acting injectables. Medicare covers MAT. Most private plans in Maine cover MAT as a behavioral health service, typically with no out-of-pocket on medication management.
If you are uninsured, we work with OHH (Opioid Health Homes) funding, STR (State Targeted Response) grant funding, or a sliding fee scale based on income. Nobody is turned away for financial reasons.
No. Buprenorphine and naltrexone are not the same as full-agonist opioids like oxycodone or heroin. Buprenorphine works on the same brain receptors as those drugs, but it caps out at a safe level instead of climbing higher. That cap is what eases withdrawal and cravings without producing the high a person can chase. Naltrexone (Vivitrol®) works differently: it blocks the receptors entirely. The AMA, ASAM, and NIDA all treat MAT as the standard of care for opioid use disorder.
As long as it keeps you in recovery. Some clients stay on MAT for a year. Some stay for many years. Some taper off under medical supervision. We do not run a built-in clock on your medication. Discharge is driven by the client’s situation, not the program’s schedule.
For buprenorphine (Suboxone®, Subutex®, Sublocade®, Brixadi®), you need to be in moderate withdrawal before the first dose to prevent precipitated withdrawal. That is usually 12 to 24 hours after your last short-acting opioid. For Vivitrol you need to be opioid-free for 7 to 10 days. Your medical provider walks you through the timing at intake. Nobody is doing this alone.
About an hour. You meet the medical provider for a full intake (history, current use, medical conditions, medications, labs if needed), the therapist for a clinical interview, and the case manager for practical needs (ID, housing, insurance, transportation). We write the first treatment plan together before you leave.
Standard 5-panel drug tests do not detect buprenorphine. Expanded panels can. If it does show up, it is a legally prescribed medication. A medical review officer verifies the prescription and the result is reported as negative for cause. We provide documentation for your employer or licensing board on request.
Yes. MaineCare covers MAT in full, including long-acting injectables. You will not pay out-of-pocket for medication or office visits on a MaineCare plan in good standing. Our case managers handle the billing and any prior-authorization steps.
We keep you in treatment. A relapse is clinical information, not a reason for discharge. Your plan adjusts: more frequent visits, a medication change, additional therapy, or help addressing the stressor that triggered the relapse. We do not discharge people for relapsing.
Yes, and many clients do. Most start on daily Suboxone to stabilize, then transition to monthly Sublocade or weekly-or-monthly Brixadi when they want a long-acting option. Switching to Vivitrol is different because it requires an opioid-free period first. Your medical provider plans any switch with you in advance.
The form takes a couple of minutes. We check your insurance, answer your questions, and book the medical visit where MAT can begin. Prefer to call? Admissions can start it by phone. MaineCare accepted, no referral required.
