Legislation is an Important Step Forward to Close the Addiction Treatment Gap and Teach, Standardize, and Cover Addiction Medicine

The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) today applauds US House and Senate leaders for announcing a bipartisan agreement on an opioid legislative package that includes key provisions to bolster the country’s addiction treatment workforce, help provide standardized evidence-based treatment for individuals with a substance use disorder (SUD), and help ensure coverage and payment models facilitate comprehensive, coordinated care for patients seeking treatment for a SUD.

Newest update on opioid addiction- calls for a cultural shift in the way Americans talk about the opioid overdose crisis and recommends actions that can prevent and treat opioid use disorder and promote recovery.

Passage of Senate Opioid Package: Statement from the American Society of Addiction Medicine

Today, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that recommend revisions to the proposed 2019 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) that will improve the delivery of evidence-based addiction medicine to combat the nation’s opioid overdose epidemic.

The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) and 28 of its chapters –– sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer urging the US Senate to pass swiftly comprehensive legislation to address the opioid overdose epidemic.

To improve coordination and accelerate the pace of change, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) is partnering with the National Academy of Medicine and more than 30 other organizations to form an Action Collaborative on Countering the U.S. Opioid Epidemic.

The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) applauds the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations for reviewing advertising and marketing practices of addiction treatment programs in the United States (US) in its hearing titled “Examining Advertising and Marketing Practices within the Substance Use Treatment Industry.” The hearing is part of Congress’s ongoing effort to ensure addiction treatment facilities abide by appropriate standards and provide evidence-based treatment.