This Policy Statement includes recommendations on standards related to the marketing of addiction treatment services and recruiting of patients as well as state and federal government development and dissemination of materials for consumers to detect potential fraudulent marketing and patient recruiting practices.

The briefing, titled “Transforming Addiction Treatment: A Bigger, Bolder Response to America’s Opioid Overdose Epidemic,” brought together experts working on the front lines of addiction treatment to discuss the comprehensive approach needed to stem the tide of a public health emergency that claimed 42,249 lives in 2016.

On May 16, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its approval Lucemyra, the first non-opioid treatment for management of opioid withdrawal symptoms. Lucemyra (lofexidine hydrochloride) reduces the release of norepinephrine and can be used to lessen the severity of withdrawal symptoms that may occur after the discontinuation of opioid use.

On May 14, the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) issued a settlement agreement which found that Charlwell House,  a skilled nursing facility, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by refusing to accept a patient for treatment because the patient was being treated with Suboxone for opioid use disorder (OUD).

Today the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) submitted a letter to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce as it considers legislation to address the opioid misuse, addiction, and overdose epidemic. The letter, submitted to Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) and Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ), urges the Committee to approve bills that expand the provision of evidence-based treatment, strengthen America’s addiction treatment infrastructure, and bolster the nation’s addiction treatment workforce.

The Coalition to Stop Opioid Overdose (CSOO) is pleased to welcome the American College of Medical Toxicology (ACMT) as a new member of the coalition. ACMT is a professional association of physicians who are Board Certified in Medical Toxicology. Since its inception in 1993, ACMT has worked to advance the practice of medical toxicology and advocates for the care of toxicologic patients and individuals with substance use disorders.

Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued their Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Action Plan. Congress included a provision in Section 13002 of the 21st Century Cutes Act requiring HHS to create this Action Plan detailing recent and planned actions from the Departments of HHS, Labor, and Treasury related to ongoing implementation of the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA).

In comments to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) today praised committee leadership for addressing the nation’s opioid addiction epidemic and offered legislative recommendations that would increase access to and improve the overall quality of addiction treatment.