Affordable Care Act to Provide Substance Abuse Treatment to Millions of New Patients                  By Celia Vimont | February 26, 2013 | 1 Comment | Filed in Addiction, Government, Healthcare, Insurance, Prevention & Treatment


The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will revolutionize the field of substance abuse treatment, according to A. Thomas McLellan, PhD, CEO and co-founder of the Treatment Research Institute.

“It will have more far-reaching positive consequences for substance abuse treatment than anything in my lifetime, including the discovery of methadone,” he said at the recent annual meeting of the New York Society of Addiction Medicine. “It will integrate substance abuse treatment into the rest of health care.”

Currently, just 2.3 million Americans receive any type of substance abuse treatment, which is less than one percent of the total population of people who are affected by the most serious of the substance use disorders—addiction, said Dr. McLellan, who is a former Deputy Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. Most who receive treatment are severely affected, he said.

“If diabetes were treated like substance abuse, only people in the most advanced stages of illness would be covered, such as those who had already lost their vision or had severe kidney damage,” he said.


A. Thomas McLellan, PhD

Dr. McLellan reported that 23 million American adults suffer from substance abuse or dependence—about the same number of adults who have diabetes. An additional 60 million people engage in “medically harmful” substance use, such as a woman whose two daily glasses of wine fuels growth of her breast cancer. The new law will allow millions more people to receive treatment, including those whose substance abuse is just emerging.

Under the ACA, substance abuse treatment will also become part of primary care, and will be focused more on prevention. Substance abuse treatment will also be considered an “essential service,” meaning health plans are required to provide it. They must treat the full spectrum of the disorder, including people who are in the early stages of substance abuse. “There will be more prevention, early intervention and treatment options,” he said. “The result will be better, and less expensive, outcomes.”

By the end of 2014, under the ACA, coverage of substance use disorders is likely to be comparable to that of other chronic illnesses, such as hypertension, asthma and diabetes. Government insurers (Medicare and Medicaid) will cover physician visits (including screening, brief intervention, assessment, evaluation and medication), clinic visits, home health visits, family counseling, alcohol and drug testing, four maintenance and anti-craving medications, monitoring tests and smoking cessation.

Currently, federal benefits, such as Medicaid and Medicare, focus on inpatient services, like detox programs, but do not cover office visits for substance abuse treatments. In contrast, Medicaid covers 100 percent of diabetes-related physician visits, clinic visits and home health visits, as well as glucose tests, monitors and supplies, insulin and four other diabetes medications, foot and eye exams, and smoking cessation for diabetics. “These are all primary care prevention and management services, which are the most effective and cheapest way of managing illness,” he said.

The impact of these new rules will be quite substantial, since an estimated 65 percent of insured Americans are covered by Medicaid or Medicare, and the rest are covered by insurance companies that base their benefits structure on federal benefits, said Dr. McLellan.

As addiction becomes treated as a chronic illness, pharmaceutical companies will be much more interested in developing new medications, he added. “Immense markets are being created,” he said. “Until now, there have been about 13,000 treatment providers for substance use disorders, and less than half of those are doctors. Now, 550,000 primary care doctors, in addition to nurses who can prescribe medications, will be caring for these patients.”- See more at: http://www.drugfree.org/join-together/addiction/affordable-care-act-to-provide-substance-abuse-treatment-to-millions-of-new-patients?utm_source=Join+Together+Daily&utm_campaign=dff816eb3f-JT_Daily_News_13_House_Members&utm_medium=email#sthash.dtJLAnvi.dpuf

Study Links Substance Abuse, Chaotic Family Life to Violence Among Teens in Denver
By Join Together Staff | February 27, 2013 | Leave a comment | Filed in Community Related, Drugs, Prevention & Youth

A new study links substance abuse, early exposure to violence and chaotic family life, to teenage violence in one Denver neighborhood. The study, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is part of a five-year effort to classify risk factors that promote teen violence. The new results come from the first year of the project.

The study involves more than 800 door-to-door surveys and interviews with more than 2,000 students, The Denver Post reports. The researchers from the University of Colorado’s Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence found 23 percent of youths said they were involved in a violent act when they were 10 or 11, and 6 percent said they used drugs at that age. Participation in religious activities was found to be the greatest deterrent to teen violence, the study found.

Community leaders in the Montebello neighborhood of Denver plan to use the information from the surveys to create a community action plan that will target the risk factors, the article notes. Their goal is to reduce teen violence and problematic behaviors by 10 percent among children ages 10 to 17 in the neighborhood by 2016.

According to the university, the project aims to reduce rates of serious violent crime and gang-related violence, in addition to rates of drug and alcohol abuse, gang participation, fighting, and bullying or being bullied in schools.- See more at: http://www.drugfree.org/join-together/drugs/study-links-substance-abuse-chaotic-family-life-to-violence-among-teens-in-denver?utm_source=Join+Together+Daily&utm_campaign=e46fb0f8bb-JT_Daily_News_Parity_Act_Leads_to_&utm_medium=email#sthash.hRECvhKP.dpuf

CALENDAR LISTING:

“Expanding Your Recovery Toolkit” Workshop March 19 in Doylestown

Free monthly workshop series for individuals and families with a current or pastdrug/alcohol addiction issue. Next session meets Tuesday, March 19, 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania, Inc., 252 W. Swamp Rd., Unit 12, Doylestown, Pa. Topics include prescription drug abuse, “Kyle: Rehabs, Jail and Sobriety” and a group discussion period. Refreshments. To register, call 215-345-6644 or email JSchwartz@councilsepa.org.

THE A TEAM

About
We are an informally structured grassroots organization concerned about drug dependence and related deaths in our Westmoreland County Communities.
DescriptionWe are the voices of families, loved ones and former addicts who have lost our children, siblings and friends to this rampant disease. We have found each other because no one else was listening and our voices together are louder than our individual pleas for help. We are not often the known ‘experts’ in the field of addictions, but we have a deeper intimate understanding of the effects of addiction than anyone should ever have to know. We have cried in the dark and screamed in the daylight and those we thought should listen and help have not seemed to hear. But now, with a stronger voice, a coalition is forming of those who hear and intend to act.


Created February 11, 2013
Awards Each day that an addict celebrates the freedsom from substance abuse!
Products A life in recovery!


Contact Info
Phone 724-570-2111

FDA Approves Two Generic Versions of Suboxone

By Join Together Staff | February 25, 2013 | 1 Comment | Filed in Government,Legal, Prescription Drugs & Treatment


The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) informed the maker of the opioid addiction treatment Suboxone that it has approved two generic versions of the drug, according to Reuters. The company, Reckitt Benckiser, had asked the agency to block the generic products because of concerns over pediatric poisonings.


Reckitt asked the FDA to refuse applications from generic drug makers unless they adopted stricter packaging standards. The FDA decided there was not enough evidence to support the need for stricter packaging, Reuters notes.


The agency said it received comments that Reckitt’s request was an anti-competitive practice, and will refer the company to the Federal Trade Commission.


The company voluntarily withdrew the sale of Suboxone tablets in the United States, and instead is selling individually sealed film strips, which melt under the tongue. Reckitt said tablets posed a risk of poisoning for children who accidentally got hold of them.


In a statement, Reckitt noted it “is disappointed with the decision but will continue to work with the FDA on safety enhancements.” The company said it will carry on with the decision to discontinue the sale of tablets of Suboxone in the United States.

Commentary: New Skills to Prevent Drug Abuse Presented at 2013 CADCA Forum

By Mary Elizabeth Elliott | February 22, 2013 | Leave a comment | Filed in Community Related & Prevention

Community and youth leaders from across the country learned new strategies to prevent substance abuse at CADCA's Forum.

As a longtime Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) team member, it was my 15th year of 6:30 am staff meetings and grueling conference schedules. And yet, the amazing people that attended CADCA’s 23rd National Leadership Forum renewed my spirit and gave me even greater energy to help coalitions transform their communities and improve public health and safety.

From 43 states and as far away as Moscow and the island of Palau, 2,600 community and state leaders converged at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center just outside of Washington, D.C. for four days in February for the Forum. Participants formed new partnerships and learned new strategies in the art and science of effective coalition building.

The CADCA Forum – the premier training conference for community prevention leaders, treatment professionals and researchers – kicked off Monday, February 4 with longtime federal partner the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) 9th Prevention Day.

The Forum featured more than 90 workshops aimed at helping CADCA’s network of 5,000 coalitions develop comprehensive evidence-based strategies to prevent the use of illicit drugs like marijuana, as well as underage and binge drinking, youth tobacco use, and the abuse of prescription and over-the-counter medicines in order to achieve community-level change.

Participants also had the opportunity to participate in “power sessions” with key leaders from federal agencies, such as SAMHSA, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), where they heard the latest research and policy updates.

“By preventing drug use, abuse and addiction, we are saving lives. The fact that we help young people live up to their potential and make communities safer and healthier is powerful,” CADCA’s Chairman and CEO, Gen. Arthur Dean told the packed ballroom at the opening plenary.

The Forum traditionally welcomes the ONDCP Director as a keynote and this year was no different. Director Gil Kerlikowske told participants that, “We need you—and prevention professionals across the country—to continue your work to prevent drug use and its related consequences. At the end of the day, prevention is the most powerful alternative to legalization or a ‘war on drugs’ in America.”

As critical as it is that we hear from our federal leaders, the event strives to bring in speakers that can give attendees inspiration and new tools. Keynote speaker Dorie Clark (@DorieClark), a branding expert and regular contributor to Forbes and the Harvard Business Review, gave us all a tutorial on messaging through social media.

The Forum is always in the Washington, D.C. area, providing an opportunity to coalesce as a national movement and connect with key policymakers all at one time. The audience heard directly from a record number of Members of Congress, including Senators Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) and Reps. Karen Bass (D-37th/CA); Elijah Cummings (D-7th/MD); Michael Fitzpatrick (R-8th/PA); William Keating (D-10th/MA); Bill Johnson (R-6th/OH); Harold Rogers (R-5th/KY); and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-40th/CA).

Attendees also heard from former Congresswoman and new CADCA Board Member Mary Bono Mack, who received our 2013 National Leadership Award. “I am very honored to receive this award from CADCA. Their good work does a lot to raise the awareness of the epidemic of drug use and ultimately to save lives of countless people around our country. I look forward to our continued work together,” Bono Mack said.

During “Capitol Hill Day,” over a thousand participants took to the Hill to educate their U.S. Representatives and Senators about the effectiveness of community coalitions and the importance of substance abuse prevention. CADCA’s Public Policy Consultant Sue Thau, who has been with the organization since its inception 20 years ago, rallied the crowd noting “Funding for prevention is down 47.3 percent over the past seven years, and if we are to avoid a train wreck of drug use and underage drinking, we cannot afford to cut anymore.”

Asking the attendees to engage in some old-fashioned “pounding the pavement” for prevention, Thau reminded the audience, “You have very powerful stories of how you have kept kids and communities on track with your work.”

Rep. Sandy Levin (D-Mich.), who met with 20 people from three coalitions in Michigan, noted on his Facebook page: “This week marked the 2013 National Leadership Forum of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA). A number of Michigan-based coalitions came down to DC to share ideas on how to best reduce youth drug and alcohol use in their communities. The most impressive thing about this forum? Meeting the enthusiastic youth leaders who are creating positive change among their peers across Michigan.”

There was not a moment to rest at the event. Besides the traditional workshops, it featured numerous tobacco-free living strategy training sessions, early-morning first-timers’ and members’ breakfasts, a Monday night reception and Ideas Fair, special offerings in the Exhibit Hall throughout the week, and CADCA set aside time for state and territory meetings to help states strategize for Hill visits and state-level challenges. Ninety coalitions formally graduate from their year-long National Coalition Academy, a training initiative of CADCA’s national Coalition Institute. A special session hosted by CADCA offered more insights on the new Smart Approaches to Marijuana organization, being spearheaded by former Rep. Patrick Kennedy.

Bringing additional energy to the conference were over 250 youth who were part of CADCA’s National Youth Leadership Initiative (NYLI).

Lauren Foisy, from the Bucks Promise for Youth and Communities in Bucks County, PA, first attended the CADCA Forum when she was a fifth-grader. This time around the 18-year-old NYLI participant said it equipped her with helpful skills and ideas that she plans on putting into practice when she returns to her community.

“With the training I have received at CADCA, I feel like I have the tools to take back home and build something effective,” Foisy said.

Forum attendees will be able to view video recordings and training session PowerPoints on the Forum website in the coming weeks. Photos are available on CADCA’s Facebook page. CADCA now turns its attention to “Big Ideas for Social Change” in the Lone Star State, as Austin, TX is the site for the 11th annual CADCA Mid-Year Training Institute on July 22-25.

Mary Elizabeth Elliott

VP of Communications, Membership and IT

CADCA