NCSL Technical Assistance on Addiction Treatment and Financing

The National Conference of State Legislatures has a limited amount of funds to underwrite technical assistance to state legislatures concerning the treatment of alcoholism and drug addiction and the financing of that treatment.  NCSL can support a one-day conference, briefing, or workshop for a legislative committee or study commission that provides presentations, information and testimony by legislators from other states, treatment experts in the field, state agency directors, university researchers, etc.  The topics are, of course, tailored to your state's needs, but can include treatment of methamphetamine addiction, drug courts, diversion, alcohol and drug abuse by youth, treatment for women, use of TANF funds for treatment, parity, etc.  If you are interested in learning more about the services NCSL could provide, please contact Allison Colker at 202.624.3581 or mailto:Allison.Colker@ncsl.org

Panel Seeks Input on Improving State Policies for Addiction Treatment and Prevention

The national Blueprint for the States Policy Panel will convene its second public hearing in Washington D.C on Monday, Feb. 13 during the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America Forum.

Government-funded programs provide most of the addiction treatment and prevention services in the U.S., and states are in the forefront of efforts to prevent and treat alcohol and drug problems. Who should lead this fight at the state level, how government entities and services can best be structured, and which state criminal-justice policies can serve as models for others are among the issues under consideration by the new Blueprint for the States Policy Panel convened by Join Together.

General Arthur T. Dean, Chairman and CEO of CADCA will provide the lead testimony at next week's hearing. Also invited to testify is Beverly Watts Davis, Senior Advisor to the Administrator for Substance Abuse, SAMHSA, as well as several other distinguished individuals (see below for list of testifiers).  Testimony gathered at the hearing will inform formulation of the panel's key recommendations, which will be released in June 2006.

The hearing will take place at the Renaissance Hotel in the East Ballroom 1:00-6:00 P.M.

"The work of the policy panel is addressing some of the most critical issues facing state government at a time of many changes in the field of treatment and prevention services," said panelist Sidney Gardner, president of Children and Family Futures, a California-based group that supports state and community organizations serving families affected by substance-use disorders. "We are looking forward to Join Together raising these issues and the panel's findings to higher national visibility.”
The panel is also accepting written testimony, which can be submitted electronically. For guidelines on how to submit testimony, go to http://www.jointogether.org/.
Join Together works to advance effective alcohol and drug policy, prevention and treatment. Major funding for Join Together is provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through the Boston University School of Public Health; see http://www.jointogether.org/about/ for more details.

The following individuals will be providing testimony:

• General Arthur T. Dean, Chairman and CEO, CADCA
• Beverly Watts Davis, Senior Advisor to the Administrator for substance abuse, SAMHSA (invited)
• Diane Galloway, Ph.D., CDM group, Inc; former Administrator, Department of Health Substance Abuse Division, Wyoming
• Kathy Jett, Director, California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs
• James McDonough, Director, Florida Department of Drug Control
• Luceille Fleming, former Director of the Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services, Ohio
• Janet Zwick, Director, Division of Health Promotion, Prevention and Addictive Behaviors, Iowa
• Jack Kemp, M.S., Director of Substance Abuse Services, Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, Delaware
• Delaware Health and Social Services
• John Daigle, Sc.D., M.S.E.E., B.S.E.E., Executive Director, Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association
• Hon. Jamey Weitzman, Maryland
• Paul Samuels, Esq, Director and President, Legal Action Center
• Uma Ahluwalia, M.S.W., Interim Director,  D.C. Children and Family Services Agency
• Harry Kressler, Director, Pima Prevention Partnership, Tucson,  Arizona
• David Choate, M.A., Vice President and Executive Director, United Way of Broward County Commission on Substance Abuse, Florida (invited)
• Dennis Embry, Ph.D., President and CEO, PAXIS Institute
• John Coppola, Executive Director, Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers of New York; former President, State Associations of Addiction Services (SAAS)
• Johnny Allem, President, Johnson Institute
• Lisa Mojer-Torres, Esq, Civil Rights Attorney, Board of Directors, Faces and Voices of Recovery                               
• Hoover Adger, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University; board member, AMERSA (invited)
• Cynthia Moreno Tuohy, NCAC II, CCDC III,  Executive Director, National Association of Addiction Counselors (NAADAC)

The Blueprint for the States Policy Panel is chaired by Michael Dukakis, former governor of Massachusetts. Other panelists include:

• Diana Bontá, vice president of public affairs for Kaiser Permanente's Southern (California) Region
• Barbara Cimaglio, deputy commissioner of the Vermont Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs
• Judge Karen Freeman-Wilson (ret.), CEO of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and chair of the Governor's Commission for a Drug-Free Indiana
• Sidney L. Gardner, president of Children and Family Futures
• Hon. Pat George, Kansas House Republican legislator
• Patricia Kempthorne, First Lady of Idaho
• Tom McHale, work and family representative for the United Auto Workers-General Motors Commercial Truck Center and board member of Faces and Voices of Recovery
• Katie McQueen, assistant professor at the Baylor College of Medicine and University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston and medical director of the Harris County Hospital District's Screening, Brief Intervention, Referral and Treatment Program
• Paul Roman, distinguished research professor at the University of Georgia and director of the Center for Research on Behavioral Health and Human Services Delivery's Institute for Behavioral Health Research
• Ken Stark, director of the Mental-Health Transformation Project and former director of the Washington Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse

Blueprint for the States:

Policies to Improve the Way States Organize and Deliver Alcohol and Drug Prevention and Treatment

HEARING DRAFT AGENDA

An Initiative of Join Together, Boston University School of Public Health

February 13, 2006

Renaissance Hotel

Renaissance East Ballroom

Washington D.C

1:00 P.M.       

Welcome

David Rosenbloom, Ph.D, Director, Join Together

Call to Order             

Michael Dukakis, Panel Chair                                                                        

1:10 P.M.       

The Role of Leadership in Promoting Effective State Policies

What should be the role and responsibilities of the governor and other state leaders? What are recommendations for organizational structures that foster leadership?

• General Arthur T. Dean, Chairman and CEO, CADCA
• Beverly Watts Davis, Senior Advisor to the Administrator for substance abuse, SAMHSA (invited)

1:30 P.M.       

State Models

• Should substance use disorders be treated as a behavioral health problem, a medical problem, or a separate specialty problem? What implications does this have for the optimal organizational model for substance use disorder treatment at the state level?           
• Diane Galloway, Ph.D., CDM group, Inc; former Administrator, Department of Health Substance Abuse Division, Wyoming
• Kathy Jett, Director, California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs
• James McDonough, Director, Florida Department of Drug Control
• Luceille Fleming, former Director of the Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services

2:30 P.M.       

Multi-Agency Coordination: Testimony will address and recommend the most effective coordinating mechanisms, such as a “superagency,” drug czar, cabinet-level SSA, and/or working-level collaboration.

In this context, the testimonies will address financing models, workforce development, prevention, treatment, the justice system, child welfare and measurement.

Financing: How should states coordinate separate funding streams that address similar problems? How should providers be paid to get the best results for patients? How should the essential support services for individuals with substance use disorders be paid for and provided?

• Janet Zwick, Director, Division of Health Promotion, Prevention and Addictive Behaviors, Iowa
• Jack Kemp, M.S., Director of Substance Abuse Services, Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, Delaware
• Delaware Health and Social Services
• John Daigle, Sc.D., M.S.E.E., B.S.E.E., Executive Director, Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association

3:30 P.M.       

Criminal Justice/Child Welfare: What organizational structures will help coordinate treatment of substance use disorder in the criminal justice and child welfare systems with other state efforts?                        

• Hon. Jamey Weitzman, Maryland
• Paul Samuels, Esq, Director and President, Legal Action Center
• Uma Ahluwalia, M.S.W., Interim Director,  D.C. Children and Family Services Agency   

4:15 P.M.       

Prevention: States spend money on alcohol and drug prevention through a number of agencies. What can the state do to improve coordination of these state prevention efforts?

• Harry Kressler, Director, Pima Prevention Partnership, Arizona
• David Choate, M.A., Vice President and Executive Director, United Way of Broward County Commission on Substance Abuse, Florida (invited)                

4:35 P.M.                   

Treatment and Recovery: What state organizational structures will help coordinate treatment and recovery to utilize current evidence-based models? Should providers and clients coordinate their own treatment and related needs through mechanisms like Case Management, vouchers, or mixed funding streams generated at the provider level?

• Dennis Embry, Ph.D., President and CEO, PAXIS Institute
• John Coppola, Executive Director, Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers of New York; former President, State Associations of Addiction Services (SAAS)
• Johnny Allem, President, Johnson Institute
• Lisa Mojer-Torres, Esq, Civil Rights Attorney, Board of Directors, Faces and Voices of Recovery                     

5:35 P.M.                   

Workforce Development: The current reality of state infrastructures with focus on the workforce. What can states do to improve the workforce across agencies in order to provide quality care?                                   

• Hoover Adger, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University; board member, AMERSA (invited)
• Cynthia Moreno Tuohy, NCAC II, CCDC III,  Executive Director, National Association of Addiction Counselors (NAADAC)

6:00 P.M.       

Summary/Adjourn