States are leading the way in efforts and innovative policies to address the opioid epidemic, which claimed more than 40,000 lives in 2016.
NCSL is pleased to facilitate the Opioid Policy Fellows program, designed to support legislators who are experienced or emerging leaders on opioid addiction and overdose issues.
The Opioid Policy Fellows Program is focused on health policies and programs being addressed by state legislatures across the country, including legislative trends and action, research and evidence, and other innovative topics and cost-effective strategies. The program is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In its first year, the program accepted 24 legislators, who are chairs of health-related committees in the legislatures of their home states. This page features information about the 2018 Opioid Policy Fellows program.
Contact the Health Program to request speaker presentations from the Opioid Policy Fellows meetings.
Meet the Fellows
- Representative Ivy Spohnholz, Alaska
- Senator David Wilson, Alaska
- Representative Heather Carter, Arizona
- Representative Joann Ginal, Colorado
- Representative David Bentz, Delaware
- Representative Sharon Cooper, Georgia
- Senator Rosalyn Baker, Hawaii
- Representative John Mizuno, Hawaii
- Representative Patricia Hymanson, Maine
- Delegate Eric Bromwell, Maryland
- Representative Denise Garlick, Massachusetts
- Representative Joe Schomacker, Minnesota
- Representative Keith Frederick, Missouri
- Senator Merv Riepe, Nebraska
- Assemblyman Michael Sprinkle, Nevada
- Assemblyman Herb Conaway, New Jersey
- Representative Deborah Armstrong, New Mexico
- Senator Judy Lee, North Dakota
- Representative Mike Ritze, Oklahoma
- Senator Joshua Miller, Rhode Island
- Representative Cameron Sexton, Tennessee
- Representative Bradley Daw, Utah
- Representative Ann Pugh, Vermont
- Representative Eileen Cody, Washington
Kickoff Meeting: Building State Leadership
Meeting Location: Hyatt Centric | New Orleans, LA
The Opioid Policy Fellows program is designed to support legislators who are experienced or emerging leaders on opioid addiction and overdose issues. The kickoff meeting will set the stage for the work of the Opioid Policy Fellows and will provide issue content in a peer learning setting. The meeting goals include:
- Build knowledge about new research and policy.
- Exchange ideas and solutions related to opioid misuse and overdose, and related issues.
- Meet and learn from other legislative leaders.
- Connect with leading researchers and policy experts.
- Identify practical information to use in your state and develop action steps.
Kickoff Meeting Agenda
| Friday, Jan. 26, 2018 |
| 4-5 p.m. |
Welcome: This session will welcome the inaugural class of the Opioid Policy Fellows with an overview of the program and introductions of the Fellows.
Speakers:
- Kate Blackman, NCSL
- Elizabeth Zurick, health policy analyst, Office of Policy and Partnerships, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Dinner & Keynote: Setting the Stage
The keynote will provide context and “set the stage” for the meeting. It will touch on current landscape of the opioid epidemic, including the history and burden of the crisis, and the misuse and changes in use of prescription drugs, fentanyl and heroin.
Speaker: Amy Peeples, deputy director, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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| Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018 |
| 8-8:30 a.m. |
Breakfast and Networking: Participants will have the opportunity to informally network and discuss key topics in their home states.
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| 8:30-8:45 a.m. |
Welcome and Overview of the Day
Kate Blackman, NCSL
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| 8:45-9:45 a.m. |
Preventing Opioid Misuse and Overdose: This session will focus on strategies to prevent opioid misuse and overdose, including those that show evidence of effectiveness, such as prescription drug monitoring programs, prescribing guidelines and provider education.
Moderator: Kate Blackman, NCSL
Speaker: Sarah Bacon, Ph.D., lead behavioral scientist, Opioid Overdose Prevention Programs Team, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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| 10:15 a.m.-Noon |
Strategies to Prevent and Intervene Early: This session will discuss state policies related to prevention and intervention, highlighting the differences across states as well as state examples of success.
Moderator: Margaret Wile, NCSL
Speaker: Sherry Green, CEO and manager, Sherry L. Green & Associates
State Respondents
- Representative Bradley Daw, Utah
- Representative Denise Garlick, Massachusetts
- Assemblyman Mike Sprinkle, Nevada
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| Noon-1 p.m. |
Lunch & “Table Talks”: Over lunch, Fellows will continue the conversation and explore topics with their peers, asking questions and sharing their state’s successes. NCSL staff and subject matter experts will be available to provide additional information.
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| 1-2:45 p.m. |
Improving Access to Treatment & Recovery: This session focus on access to care and state policy levers to improve service delivery and coverage across the continuum of care related to treatment and recovery. The conversation will discuss the issues that contribute to a lack of access to care as well programs and policies in the states.
Moderator: Karmen Hanson, NCSL
Speakers
- Commander Karen Hearod, regional administrator, HHS Region VI, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
- Robert I.L. Morrison, executive director, National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors
- Kirsten Beronio, senior policy advisor for Behavioral Health Care, Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services
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| 3-3:45 p.m. |
State Efforts to Facilitate Access to Services — Building on the prior discussion, this session will feature legislators sharing their state’s efforts, successes and challenges to improve treatment and recovery supports.
Moderator: Kate Blackman, NCSL
State Respondents
- Representative Cameron Sexton, Tennessee
- Senator Joshua Miller, Rhode Island
- Assemblyman Herb Conaway, New Jersey
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| 3:45-4:45 p.m. |
Federal Update: Considerations for State Policymakers — This session will highlight potential federal policy changes and what they may mean for state policymakers. Speakers will discuss recent federal legislation and efforts as they pertain to opioid misuse prevention and treatment.
Moderator: Margaret Wile, NCSL
Speaker: Haley Nicholson, NCSL
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| 4:45-5:15 p.m. |
Action Planning, Networking and Debrief
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| Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018 |
| 8-8:30 a.m. |
Breakfast and Networking: Participants will have the opportunity to informally network and discuss key topics in their home states.
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| 8:30-10 a.m. |
“SHO and Tell”: Dialogue with State Health Officials — State health officials will discuss some of the efforts that they are taking in their states, including challenges and successes. State health officials and Fellows will have the opportunity to discuss issues in their own states and ask questions of each other.
Moderator: Karmen Hanson, NCSL
Speakers
- Michael Fraser, Ph.D., executive director, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
- Dr. Jay Butler, chief medical officer, Department of Health and Human Services, Alaska
- Dr. Jeffrey D. Howard, Jr., acting commissioner, Department for Public Health, Kentucky
- Dr. Parham Jaberi, assistant secretary, Department of Health, Louisiana
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| 10:15-11:15 a.m. |
Looking Down the Road: This session will focus on the opioid epidemic as a part of a larger addiction crisis and the ways that leaders in all sectors can approach and intervene in the crisis.
Moderator: Margaret Wile, NCSL
Speaker: Dr. Rochelle Head-Dunham, executive director/medical director, Metropolitan Human Services District, New Orleans
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| 11:15-12:15 p.m. |
Lunch, Action Planning and Reflection: This session will wrap up with meeting with an opportunity to debrief and reflect, and share Fellows’ action steps to work on in the coming months. We will also discuss NCSL support and topics for upcoming events.
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Second Meeting: Evidence and Innovations
Meeting Location: Warwick Hotel | Denver, Colorado
The Opioid Policy Fellows program is designed to support legislators who are experienced or emerging leaders on opioid addiction and overdose issues. The second meeting will continue the work of the Opioid Policy Fellows and will build learning in a peer setting. The meeting goals include:
- Build knowledge about new research, policy and innovations.
- Exchange ideas and solutions with other legislative leaders related to opioid misuse and overdose, and related issues.
- Connect with leading researchers and policy experts.
- Identify practical information to use in your state and expand or develop new action steps.
Meeting Agenda
| Wednesday, June 13 |
| 1-1:45 p.m. |
Lunch & Networking: Over lunch, Fellows will reconnect with each other and discuss news, priority issues and state action with their peers.
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| 1:45-2 p.m. |
Welcome
- Kate Blackman, NCSL
- Martha King, NCSL
- Elizabeth Zurick, Office of Policy and Partnerships, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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| 2-3 p.m. |
Fellows Report Out: This session will provide an opportunity for Fellows to share their challenges and successes since the last meeting. Fellows will provide updates on their action plans and share new developments in their states.
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| 3-5:15 p.m. |
Non-Traditional Partners: Criminal Justice System
This session will focus on strategies with law enforcement and the criminal justice system, such as diversion and deflection, and innovations connecting health and criminal justice, as well as medication-assisted treatment and community resources for those facing addiction.
Speakers
- Amber Widgery, NCSL
- Senator Whitney Westerfield, Kentucky
- Craig Hannah, Opiate Intervention Court, New York
Respondents
- Senator Judy Lee, North Dakota
- Representative Eileen Cody, Washington
- Representative Brad Daw, Utah
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| 6:15-8 p.m. |
Dinner and Keynote: Brain Science & Addiction
Over dinner, the keynote speaker will discuss the science behind addiction and participants will have the opportunity to explore the implications for policymakers.
Moderator
Speaker
- Joe Sakai, M.D., University of Colorado School of Medicine
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| Thursday, June 14 |
| 8:30-8:45 a.m. |
Welcome & Overview of the Day
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| 8:45-10 a.m. |
Creative Collaborations: This session will feature Colorado’s collaborations across sectors with health, law enforcement and others. Speakers will share how they used data to focus efforts, and the successes and lessons learned.
Moderator
Speakers
- Representative Joann Ginal, Colorado
- Robert Valuck, Ph.D., Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Colorado
- José Esquibel, Office of Community Engagement, Office of the Attorney General, Colorado
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| 10:15-11 a.m. |
New Ideas, Next Steps & Networking: This session will provide an opportunity for Fellows to share innovations in their states, and discuss ideas learned at the meeting as well as next steps.
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| 11 a.m.-Noon |
Opportunities & Possibilities: This session will wrap up the meeting with a story of recovery and hope.
Moderator
Speaker
- Cortney Lovell, WRise Consulting
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| 12:15-1:30 p.m. |
Optional Networking Lunch: Fellows may choose to enjoy lunch together to continue the peer dialogue.
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| 1:45 p.m. |
Transition to National Meeting of State HHS Committee Chairs
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Webinars
Friday, Feb. 23, 2018 | 2 p.m. ET/ 1 p.m. CT/ Noon MT/ 11 a.m. PT — Contact Kate Blackman for more informaiton.
Opioids & Early Adversity: Connecting Childhood Trauma and Addiction
Friday, April 6 | 2 p.m. ET/ 1 p.m. CT/ Noon MT/ 11 a.m. PT
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are potentially traumatic events, such as abuse or neglect, that can have negative, lasting effects on health and well-being. This webinar will explore the connection between ACEs and the opioid epidemic. Speakers will discuss how ACEs can affect later substance misuse, including the intergenerational impacts on families. Experts and legislators will highlight potential policy options and innovative state strategies.