August 5, 2024
Good morning,
1) We are waiting for UHF to post a recording of its recent Annual Medicaid Conference. In the meantime, here’s a link that takes you to the PowerPoint slide deck used by State Medicaid Director Amir Bassiri during his keynote presentation. https://media.uhfnyc.org/filer_public/30/ca/30ca4293-9d8b-4673-beee-c110296ab504/uhf_2024_medicaid_conference_slides.pdf
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2) Yesterday’s (Sunday) New York Times included the following story on the front page of the paper:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/04/nyregion/harlem-drug-addiction-onpoint-neighbors.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Ak4.EoxM.-Oev9y13qQjp&smid=url-share
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STAT HEALTH, 8/5
3) The best tool we have to treat meth addictions is behind held back by politics
When it comes to drugs like methamphetamines and cocaine, highly effective medications like those for opioid addiction don’t exist. But behavioral incentives to treat a meth addiction is settled science, and offering financial rewards like gift cards to people who can show they’ve reduced or stopped their meth use is particularly effective, STAT’s Lev Facher reports. So is the U.S. pursuing this sort of high-quality treatment?
Not really. The Biden administration has expressed support for these types of rewards, known officially as contingency management. But there’s a longstanding $75 annual cap on how much money can be given to patients in programs funded by select federal programs, and the Biden administration has refused to raise it. Read more about the current policy landscape.
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| 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health Results Released |
| On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through SAMHSA, published the findings of the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).This survey provides insights into the experiences of U.S. residents experiencing mental health and substance use challenges. The 2023 NSDUH report features estimates categorized by race, ethnicity, and age group. Findings from the report include the following: |
| Among adults aged 18 or older in 2023, 22.8% (or 58.7 million people) had any mental illness (AMI) in the past year.In 2023, 3.1% of people (8.9 million) misused opioids in the past year, which is similar to 2022 and 2021 (3.2% and 8.9 million, 3.4% and 9.4 million respectively).30.5 million adults aged 18 or older (or 12.0%) perceived that they ever experienced a substance use challenge. Among these adults, 73.1% (or 22.2 million people) considered themselves to be in recovery or to have recovered. |
| To read the report in full, click here. ——————————- |
On July 30 House Representative Lauren Underwood of (D-Illinois) introduced H.R. 9232, a new bill that would establish coverage for certain residential SUD services under the Medicare Program. The text of the bill isn’t up yet however the link below is the place to watch for it. The bill is in the very early stages of the legislative process and will move to a committee shortly.