Following the classification of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as a pandemic by the World
Health Organization (WHO), countries were encouraged to implement urgent and aggressive
actions to change the course of the disease spread while also protecting the physical and mental
health and well-being of all people. The challenges and solutions of providing prevention,
treatment, and care for those affected with issues related to substance use and addictive
behaviors are still being discussed by the global community. Several international documents
have been developed for service providers and public health professionals working in the field
of addiction medicine in the context of the pandemic (1–3), however, less is known about
country-level responses. In the current paper we, as individual members of the Network of Early
Career Professionals working in Addiction Medicine (NECPAM), discuss emerging country-level
guidelines developed in the 6 months following the outbreak.
