Issue: Stigma reinforces perceptions that addiction is a moral failing rather than a chronic, relapsing brain disease. These pervasive beliefs, driven by fear and misinformation, influence policy and public opinion. With the opioid epidemic sweeping the nation, individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) often lack access to necessary, life-saving treatment. Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for OUD can effectively stabilize lives, yet some brand MAT as a “substitution” therapy trading one drug for another. Lack of access to care and health disparities result for those with this chronic disease. Description: The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s (AHRQ) Academy for Integrating Behavioral Health and Primary Care supports grantees working to increase access to MAT in rural primary care practices in five states. The AHRQ Academy recently conducted an environmental scan on the implementation of MAT in rural primary care, and identified over 250 tools and resources for implementation. This presentation includes (1) a synthesis of grantee experiences and strategies devised to address stigma, and (2) an overview of resources identified through the environmental scan, and valuable to those implementing MAT. Lessons Learned: Using strategies to counter the impact of stigma helps facilitate the implementation of MAT. Diverse approaches are required to address the concerns of a variety of audiences. Language positively or negatively reinforces attitudes towards OUD and MAT, so avoidance of stigmatizing terms and use of tailored communication strategies to reach a target audience is critical. Community advocacy efforts that use personal narratives to promote awareness and education on MAT can demystify treatment and humanize recovery. Finally, identifying clinical champions and building relationships will increase provider support for MAT. Recommendation: Targeted efforts to de-stigmatize OUD and MAT at the provider, organizational, patient, and community levels enhances effective implementation of MAT.