IHE and Camurus study indicates substantial societal cost reductions associated with opioid dependence treatment in the UK

• Each person with opioid dependence recruited into or retained in treatment for one year was associated with an estimated GBP 140,876 lower societal costs compared with a person not in treatment
• Most cost reductions occurred outside healthcare, primarily distributed among families and communities, economic productivity, and the criminal justice system
• Findings support a cross-sector approach to policy and funding decisions for opioid dependence treatment

Lund, Sweden — 9 November 2026 — Camurus (NASDAQ STO: CAMX) and The Swedish Institute for Health Economics, IHE, today announced a publication in Addiction¹ of a model-based study estimating the societal costs of opioid dependence in the UK and the potential cost reductions associated with people accessing and being retained in treatment.

The analysis compared estimated costs across sectors for people with opioid dependence in treatment and not in treatment. For each person with opioid dependence successfully recruited or retained in treatment for a period of one year, societal costs were estimated to be GBP 140,876 lower. The largest cost reductions were attributable to families and communities (37%), economic productivity (37%), and the criminal justice system (23%). Two percent of the estimated societal cost reductions were accounted for by healthcare costs.

The results indicate that while treatment costs are largely met by healthcare systems, most of the associated benefits are realized elsewhere in society. This misalignment between where investment is made and where economic benefits occur underscores the need for a cross-sector perspective in policy and funding decisions.

“Opioid dependence places a heavy burden on individuals, families and our communities, and opioid-related deaths continue to rise in the UK and across Europe. Despite effective treatments being available, many people remain untreated because of stigma, limited access, past negative treatment experiences, and practical barriers”, says Daniel Mogford, International Medical Director, CNS, Camurus. “The findings highlight the need to improve access to, and retention in, treatment. It also underscores the need for system-wide coordination. While the costs of innovation are largely met in the healthcare system, the wider economic benefits of high quality and widely accessible treatment are realized at scale in sectors such as criminal justice and social care.”

“The model provides a comprehensive societal-perspective assessment, showing both how potential cost reductions are distributed across sectors, and who ultimately bears the cost”, says Magnus Värendh, Senior Research Manager, IHE. “While the study was not designed to establish causality, the results indicate the potential value of treatment and that economic consequences of opioid dependence extend well beyond the healthcare system, across society as a whole.”

The model was based on secondary data from peer-reviewed journals and official reports. An estimated 364,000 people are living with opioid dependence in the UK, of whom around 47 percent are in treatment. Per-person costs were categorized according to both the sector in which they were incurred (healthcare, social care, economy, wider social, and criminal justice), and the bearer of the cost (government, employers, insurance companies, families/communities, and the people with opioid dependence).

The full publication, "Modelling the wider socio-economic costs of opioid dependence in the UK", is available at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.70694.

This study was funded by Camurus and conducted in collaboration between Camurus and the IHE.

For more information

Camurus
Fredrik Tiberg, President & CEO
Tel. +46 (0)46 286 46 92
fredrik.tiberg@camurus.com

Daniel Mogford, International Medical Director, CNS
Tel. +44 (0)7882 965 255
daniel.mogford@camurus.com

IHE
Peter Lindgren, CEO IHE
peter.lindgren@ihe.se 

About Camurus
Camurus is an international, science-led biopharmaceutical company committed to developing and commercializing innovative, long-acting medicines for improving the lives of patients with severe and chronic diseases. New drug products with best-in-class potential are conceived based on the company’s proprietary FluidCrystal^® technology and its extensive R&D expertise. The R&D pipeline includes products for the treatment of dependence, pain, cancer, and endocrine diseases. Camurus has operations across Europe, the US, and Australia, with headquarters in Lund, Sweden. The company’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm under the ticker CAMX. For more information, visit www.camurus.com and LinkedIn.

About IHE
IHE is a well-established, independent, health economic research institute that provides high-quality research and expert consultation in the field of health care. We have ongoing projects with over 50 customers worldwide representing national authorities, pharmaceutical companies, healthcare providers, industry associations and patient groups. IHE was founded in 1979 as the first health economic research center in Sweden and is one of the oldest health economic research centers in Europe. In addition to the head office in Lund, IHE has also an office in central Stockholm. For more information visit, www.ihe.se and LinkedIn.

References

1. Keel, G., et al. Modelling the wider socio-economic costs of opioid dependence in the UK. Addiction. 08 November 2026. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70694.

This information was submitted for publication at 8.20 am CET on 9 November 2026.