Billy Brooks, DrPH, MPH

Phone: 423.439.5573
Email: brooksb1@etsu.edu

Biostatistics and Epidemiology
East Tennessee State University
1276 Gilbreath Dr.
Johnson City, TN 37614

Current Projects - (1)

Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Penetration in Rural vs. Urban Healthcare Settings in the U.S.
This study will include an analysis of 2018/2019 Medicare, Medicaid and Commercial claims to compare the penetration of Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) and its different components in rural compared to urban healthcare settings. Within the overarching analysis, the study team will examine the type of interventions conducted within the SBIRT framework stratified by provider type, healthcare setting, and rural and urban provider ZIP codes. Findings will be analyzed within the context of county-level substance use rates, historical enactment of state SBIRT billing codes, overdoses, and alcohol poisoning-based hospital admissions contrasting trends in SBIRT administration with a proxy for community need.
Research center: ETSU/NORC Rural Health Research Center
Topics: Chronic diseases and conditions, Health promotion and disease prevention, Medicaid and CHIP, Medicare, Mental and behavioral health, Private health insurance, Public health, Substance use and treatment

A Rural-Urban Analysis of Buprenorphine Therapy During and After Pregnancy Among the Commercially Insured
Policy Brief
ETSU/NORC Rural Health Research Center
Date: 01/2025
This analysis describes the frequency of markers of evidence-based prescribing of buprenorphine-containing medications for the treatment of opioid use disorder during and surrounding pregnancy in rural and non-rural settings among commercially insured people ages 15-44.