Alex S. Bennett, PhD, MS
NYU School of Global Public Health - Research Associate Professor
NYU School of Global Public Health - Director, Opioid Overdose Prevention Program
NYU School of Global Public Health - Director, Opioid Overdose Prevention Program
Email: asb19@nyu.edu
Education
PhD/MS, History and Policy, Carnegie Mellon UniversityMPA, Public Policy Research and Analysis, University of Pittsburgh
BA/MA, History, University of Florida
Research Interests
Overdose prevention, naloxone, veteran's health, mixed-methods research, opioids, drug use, HIV/HCV prevention, community-engaged research BIO
Alex S. Bennett is a Research Associate Professor at the NYU School of Global Public Health and a Principal Investigator with the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) and directs the Overdose Prevention Program. For more than 25 years, his work has focused on harm reduction, substance use, and overdose prevention, bridging community-based practice and academic research. He has served as Principal Investigator on NIH/NIDA-funded studies examining overdose risk and prevention, peer-based interventions, naloxone and other harm reduction strategies, and the health and service needs of people who use drugs. A longstanding area of his research has focused on military veterans who use opioids and other drugs, particularly veterans who are disconnected from traditional VA services, examining overdose vulnerability, reintegration, peer support, and community-based approaches to reducing drug-related harms.Dr. Bennett’s current research examines how people who use drugs, peer networks, and harm reduction organizations respond to rapidly changing drug markets, including the emergence of fentanyl, xylazine, medetomidine, and other synthetic substances. His work uses qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods and is grounded in his longstanding involvement in community-based harm reduction. In addition to his drug and public health research, Alex is completing a historical study examining the emergence of juvenile drug use and drug policy in post-World War II America. His book, Governing Juvenile Drug Use and the Social Worlds of Juvenile Drug Users, draws on archival research and juvenile court case files to explore how historical responses to youth drug use continue to shape contemporary approaches to drug policy, treatment, and harm reduction. Across his research, he emphasizes collaboration with people who use drugs, peer workers, service providers, and community partners in developing and translating research into practice. Bennett currently serves as an Associate Editor of Harm Reduction Journal.
Projects
Principal Investigator, Evaluation of a Community-Based Education, Navigation, and Support (CENS) Intervention to Reduce Opioid-Related Harms Among Military Veterans. Active
Principal Investigator, Expanding Opioid Overdose Prevention Program Capacity in New York City. Active
Principal Investigator, Opioid Misuse and Overdose Risk Patterns Among Recent Veterans. Completed
Principal Investigator, Overdose Risk Management and Compensation in the Era of Naloxone. Completed
Principal Investigator, Technology to Increase Naloxone Uptake Among Opioid Users Who Initially Decline. Completed
Publications
Recent
Bennett AS, Chen Y, Harris A, Frank D, Rouhani S, Cepeda A, Valdez A, Bather JR, Goodman MS, Elliott L (2026).
Syringe service program utilization, behavioral, and experiential factors associated with greater naloxone protection in a longitudinal cohort of people who use illicit opioids in New York City
Harm Reduction Journal, 23 (1), 99. doi: 10.1186/s12954-026-01464-4. PMCID: PMC13251179.
Syringe service program utilization, behavioral, and experiential factors associated with greater naloxone protection in a longitudinal cohort of people who use illicit opioids in New York City
Harm Reduction Journal, 23 (1), 99. doi: 10.1186/s12954-026-01464-4. PMCID: PMC13251179.
Frank D, Elliott L, Bennett A, Cleland C, Patel D, Scheidell J (2026).
People who use illegal opioids use of methadone over time, and what characteristics are correlated with staying in methadone maintenance treatment
Substance Use and Misuse, 61 (5), 766-773. doi: 10.1080/10826084.2025.2586255.
People who use illegal opioids use of methadone over time, and what characteristics are correlated with staying in methadone maintenance treatment
Substance Use and Misuse, 61 (5), 766-773. doi: 10.1080/10826084.2025.2586255.
Laskowski LK, Khezri M, Bennett AS, Lee M, Walters SM, Allen B, Bunting AM (2026).
The prevention education partnership: A public-academic partnership to expand overdose education and naloxone training in New York City public schools
Health Promotion Practice, 27 (2), 227-232. doi: 10.1177/15248399251318695. PMCID: PMC12353646.
The prevention education partnership: A public-academic partnership to expand overdose education and naloxone training in New York City public schools
Health Promotion Practice, 27 (2), 227-232. doi: 10.1177/15248399251318695. PMCID: PMC12353646.
Aronson ID, Cramer A, Quiles R, Marcus O, Gibson B, Vargas-Estrella B, Stern S, Fong C, Bennett AS (2026).
Developing Spanish language intervention content to address health disparities among people who use drugs, and other hard-to-reach populations
Journal of Urban Health, 103 (1), 12-15. doi: 10.1007/s11524-025-01050-2. PMCID: PMC13136433.
Developing Spanish language intervention content to address health disparities among people who use drugs, and other hard-to-reach populations
Journal of Urban Health, 103 (1), 12-15. doi: 10.1007/s11524-025-01050-2. PMCID: PMC13136433.
Elliott L, Harris A, Crasta D, Goodman MS, Chen Y, Rouhani S, Frank D, Bather JR, Bennett AS (2026).
Higher levels of naloxone protection are associated with lower risk-taking: A longitudinal analysis of New York City residents using unprescribed opioids
Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 278, 112989. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112989. PMCID: PMC13097714.
Higher levels of naloxone protection are associated with lower risk-taking: A longitudinal analysis of New York City residents using unprescribed opioids
Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 278, 112989. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112989. PMCID: PMC13097714.
Notable
Characteristics of an overdose prevention, response, and naloxone distribution program in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Journal of Urban Health, 88 (6), 1020-1030. doi: 10.1007/s11524-011-9600-7. PMCID: PMC3232410.
Dr. Bennett's Research Gate Profile