SAMHSA: Upcoming Release of FAQs on 42 CFR Part 2

SAMHSA is pleased to announce the upcoming release of its second set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on 42 CFR Part 2. As you may be aware, SAMHSA released an initial set of FAQs on Confidentiality and Health Information Exchanges in August 2010. As part of an effort to ensure appropriate, effective, and efficient application of the regulations, SAMHSA has undergone a process of reviewing further questions submitted by the field subsequent to the release of the first set of FAQs. The release of this set of FAQs is a direct result of that review.

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Participate in the Public Stakeholder Meeting

December 19, 2011 | 9 to 11 a.m. EST | 1 Choke Cherry Road, Rockville, MD

As part of the effort to promote a clear understanding of the regulations in the current environment, you are cordially invited to a public stakeholder roll-out meeting to review the FAQs and provide responses to any remaining questions.

In Person: The meeting will be held on December 19, 2011, from 9 to 11 a.m. EST in SAMHSA's headquarters at 1 Choke Cherry Road in Rockville, Maryland.

By Phone: A call-in option has been provided. To use this option, dial 866-862-0213 and enter passcode 56335529.

If you wish to participate either in person or by phone, please RSVP to Deepa Avula at deepa.avula@samhsa.hhs.gov by December 5, 2011.

Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act

The US Department of Labor has a new web-based tool to help realize the hope for parity in coverage for addiction with other health conditions. To use the online question and complaint filing tool, go here and choose from the options under Request Assistance from a Benefits Advisor. You can also use the Parity Toolkit to advocate for your rights and benefits under the law.

Faces & Voices Community Listening Forum Toolkit

Faces & Voices of Recovery developed this Community Listening Forum Toolkit after hosting four Community Listening Forums in 2010 and 2011 with recovery advocates in Maryland, Florida, Oregon and Texas. You'll find everything you need to organize one in your community to raise awareness about important issues and develop support for taking action. Check it out here.

Nyswander Dole Award Winner, Ed Johnson

Please join us in congratulating Southeast ATTC South Carolina Program Manager, Ed Johnson, who has been selected as one of the 2012 recipients of the Nyswander-Dole Award by the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD). This is the first time that an individual from South Carolina has been chosen to receive this award. The award is named after Drs. Marie Nyswander and Vincent Dole, who pioneered the use of medication in the treatment of opioid dependence and is affectionately referred to as the “Marie Award.” The award, which is presented bi-annually, was first presented in 1983 to recognize extraordinary work and service in the opioid treatment field. Individuals are nominated by their state opioid treatment providers group and selected by the Awards Committee of the AATOD Board of Directors. A maximum of eight recipients are selected. The award will be presented at the Awards Banquet during the 2012 AATOD Conference “Recovery for Patients, Families and Communities” which will be held April 21-25, 2012 in Las Vegas Nevada.

Prior to joining the staff at Southeast ATTC, Ed was the Program Administrator for the Opioid Treatment Program at Charleston Center (Charleston County Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services) located in Charleston, South Carolina for the previous ten years and represented South Carolina on the AATOD Board of Directors. He worked with this population and with individuals with substance use disorders and HIV disease for over for over twenty years.

Training of Trainers: Provider’s Introduction to Substance Abuse Treatment for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Individuals

December 13-15, Charlotte, North Carolina

Location: TBA

The curriculum is intended to provide both practitioners and administrators involved in substance abuse treatment with: Increased familiarity with the issues and barriers faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in need of substance use disorder-related services; Knowledge about the interaction between LGBT issues and substance use and abuse; Enhanced ability to offer sensitive, affirmative, culturally relevant, and effective treatment to LGBT clients in substance use disorders treatment.

For more information and registration, contact:

email: southeast@ATTCnetwork.org

Tel: 404-752-1016

Journal Article: Opioid Addiction and Abuse in Primary Care Practice: A Comparison of Methadone and Buprenorphine as Treatment Options

Authored by Jean Bonhomme, MD, MPH; Ruth S. Shim, MD, MPH; Richard Gooden, MBA; Dawn Tyus, MS; George Rust, MD.

This article will be featured in the November issue of the Journal of the National Medical Association.

Opioid abuse and addiction have increased in frequency in the U.S. over the past twenty years. In 2009, an estimated 5.3 million persons used opioid medications non-medically within the past month, 200,000 used heroin, and approximately 9.6 percent of African Americans used an illicit drug. Racial and ethnic minorities experience disparities in availability and access to mental health care, including substance use disorders.

Primary care practitioners are often called upon to differentiate between appropriate, medically-indicated opioid use in pain management versus inappropriate abuse or addiction. Racial and ethnic minority populations tend to favor primary care treatment settings over specialty mental health settings. Recent therapeutic advances allow patients requiring specialized treatment for opioid abuse and addiction to be managed in primary care settings. The Drug Addiction Treatment Act of 2000 enables qualified physicians with readily available short-term training to treat opioid-dependent patients with buprenorphine in an office-based setting, potentially making primary care physicians active partners in the diagnosis and treatment of opioid use disorders.

Methadone and buprenorphine are effective opioid replacement agents for maintenance and/or detoxification of opioid addicted individuals. However, restrictive federal regulations and stigmatization of opioid addiction and treatment have limited the availability of methadone. The opioid partial agonist-antagonist buprenorphine/naloxone combination has proven an effective alternative. This article reviews the literature on differences between buprenorphine and methadone regarding availability, efficacy, safety, side-effects, and dosing, identifying resources for enhancing the effectiveness of medication-assisted recovery through coordination with behavioral/psychological counseling, embedded in the context of recovery-oriented systems of care.