Oct 28, 2021, 02:00 by Jaida Montenegro

This statement highlights specific policy recommendations to improve both access to, and the quality of, methadone treatment for OUD by making it more patient-centered and integrated with other medical care.

Oct 15, 2021, 02:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On October 13th, ASAM, along with members of the Coalition to Stop Opioid Overdose (CSOO) and members of the Mental Health Liaison Group (MHLG), sent a letter to Chairman Ron Wyden and Ranking Member Mike Crapo of the Senate Committee on Finance, encouraging full extension of federal mental health and substance use disorder parity protections to Medicare, all of Medicaid, and TRICARE.

Oct 4, 2021, 02:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On October 4th, the Ohio Society of Addiction Medicine (OHSAM) sent a letter to Senator Terry Johnson of the Ohio General Assembly highlighting concerns with his recently introduced bill SB 216 or “Dylan’s Law.”

Sep 29, 2021, 02:00 by Jaida Montenegro

The American Society of Addiction Medicine and the American Medical Association today released new recommendations as part of the AMA Substance Use and Pain Care Task Force to help end the nation’s drug-related overdose and death epidemic.

Sep 17, 2021, 02:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On September 17th, the Northern New England Society of Addiction Medicine (NNESAM) sent a letter to Governor Janet Mills urging her to reinstate Executive Order 27, which expanded syringe services programs (SSPs) in Maine.

Sep 16, 2021, 02:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On September 10th, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) submitted a comment letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) outlining suggested improvements to the proposed Physician Payment Schedule for calendar year (CY) 2022.

Sep 13, 2021, 01:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On September 10th, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), along with dozens of partner organizations, sent a letter to Chair Patty Murray of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) urging for the inclusion of enhanced mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) parity enforcement within the Senate’s version of the budget reconciliation proposal.

Sep 13, 2021, 01:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On September 9th, the Michigan Society of Addiction Medicine (MISAM) submitted a comment letter to the Michigan Bureau of Professional Licensing in support of proposed changes to the pharmacy controlled substances rules of the Drug Treatment Prescriber Program. These revisions would eliminate burdensome requirements on the licensing of controlled substances and bring the state rules into closer alignment with federal standards.

Sep 2, 2021, 01:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On September 1st, the Michigan Society of Addiction Medicine (MISAM) sent a letter to Director Hawks of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) to highlight concerns about the department’s regulation of medication for addiction treatment (MAT).

Aug 31, 2021, 01:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On August 23rd, ASAM joined with a coalition of 45 partner organizations to send a letter to the leadership of the House Energy and Commerce Committee in support of the Moms Matter Act (H.R. 909).

Aug 24, 2021, 01:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On August 24th, ASAM sent a letter to Representative Cohen affirming its strong support for the Making Essentials Affordable and Lawful (MEAL) Act of 2021 (H.R. 2837). This proposed legislation would remove the federal ban prohibiting individuals with felony drug convictions from receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits.

Aug 18, 2021, 16:20 by admin admin

Aug 18, 2021, 16:19 by admin admin

Aug 18, 2021, 01:00 by Jaida Montenegro

On August 9th, the Kentucky Society of Addiction Medicine (KYSAM) sent a letter to President Shuffett of the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure (KBML), responding to KBML’s recently published Board Opinion Relating to Online/Virtual Medication Assisted Treatment.

Aug 14, 2021, 01:00 by admin admin

ASAM and 124 other organizations urged congressional leadership to pass legislation that would permit Medicaid to support essential health care for 30 days prior to release and upon reentry.

Aug 9, 2021, 13:41 by admin admin

Aug 9, 2021, 13:40 by admin admin

This Week in the Weekly.. We have some important articles this week about opioids. An interesting study from the journal Nature found that people with COVID-19 exhibit higher risk of death and health resource utilization beyond the first 30 days of illness and more specifically, have an increased use of pain medications, antidepressants and anxiolytics along with other prescribed medications. - Editor-in-Chief: Nicholas Athanasiou, MD , MBA , FASAM

Aug 9, 2021, 13:40 by admin admin

This Week in the Weekly… The federal government has been making some headlines: the Biden administration is extending a ban on fentanyl-like substances (NBC News), proposing a ban on menthol cigarettes (NY Times), and most importantly (especially if you were a little heartbroken back in January), HHS is relaxing the recommendations to prescribing buprenorphine (HHS.gov). - Editor-in-Chief: Nicholas Athanasiou, MD , MBA , FASAM

Aug 9, 2021, 13:40 by admin admin

This week I have the remarkable opportunity to sit on a (virtual) dais sponsored by the American Bar Association, on endemic opioid use disorder. I get to bask in the rays of knowledge of many fine minds and assiduous pathfinders. Among these will be our own advocacy staff, who have been central to the writing of our opioid used disorder (OUD) treatment policy for correctional facilities, as well as policies for those among our membership seeking or needing assistance. Participating will be Presidents of the ABA, the AMA, the APA, and ASAM. It’s a pretty remarkable forum. And it stimulates attention to several websites, including ASAM’s own ASAM Treatment in Correction Settings Toolkit and the ASAM Public Policy Statement on Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder in Correctional Settings - Emeritus Editor: William Haning, MD, DFAPA, DFASAM

Aug 9, 2021, 13:40 by admin admin

For some decades, Dr. Tom Kosten and associates have pursued the tantalizing possibility of a cocaine immunization, a vaccination that would result in the excretion or at least inactivation of the drug. This was taken less-seriously than was warranted by many at the time, largely from a failure among those many to understand the underlying principle – binding of a small molecule, cocaine, with a more recognizable and larger molecule, to template a vaccine. In the interval since his initial work, there have been many efforts to create similar immunizations, discussions of which I have sampled here. Most of these are journalistic essays but provide a quick snapshot of the intentions, and the relative successes, for a variety of drug classes. This was brought to mind by two associations: Dr. Athanasiou’s reminder that April 20, or “420” is a banner for the cannabis-using community, mythologically related to 4:20 PM and the usual end of the high school day. (There is also “710”, “OIL” upside-down and thus celebrated on July the 10th, suggesting two distinct quasi-religious sects; but I digress.) The other was the persistent, pervasive presence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the efforts to produce effective immunizations; a loose, but not completely tangential association. Among those immunizing efforts against drug actions, there has been exploration of approaches that would block the more toxic synthetic cannabinoids subsumed under the umbrella of “spice.” - Editor-in-Chief: Dr. William Haning, MD, DFAPA, DFASAM