Opioid Crisis Response

Opioid Crisis Response

Mental health and addiction crises top the federal policy agenda in 2023

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This week our In Focus section reviews President Joseph R. Biden’s 2023 State of the Union Address (SOTU) to Congress. The President highlighted specific actions that Congress, and the Administration have taken over the last two years to advance his health care priorities.

During his first SOTU address in 2022, President Biden announced the creation of a “Unity Agenda”, which included priority policy areas with potential for bi-partisan support. The President highlighted several steps the Administration has taken to advance the “Unity Agenda” including:

  • The bipartisan effort to enact the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment (MAT) Act, which removed the federal requirement for practitioners to have a waiver (known as the X-waiver) to prescribe medications, like buprenorphine, for the treatment of opioid use disorder
  • The Cancer Moonshot announcements for almost 30 new programs, policies, and resources to close the screening gap, tackle environmental exposure, decrease preventable cancers, advance cutting-edge research, support patients and caregivers, and more.
  • Addressing mental health needs through the expansion of Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics and launch of the 988-suicide prevention hotline.

In his SOTU and accompanying White House materials, the President also proposed new policies and initiatives to further advance his health care agenda. These actions include a combination of issues that would require Congressional approval as well as actions regulatory agencies can already advance. Congress and the Administration are expected to build on previous bipartisan achievements to tackle the nation’s dual crises with addiction and mental health.

Notably, the policies outlined in the SOTU foreshadow an active regulatory agenda over the next 18 months as the Administration seeks to solidify key aspects of the President’s health care agenda ahead of the next Presidential election.

The Administration’s planned actions include the following:

Opioids

  • Calling on Congress to pass legislation to permanently schedule all illicitly produced fentanyl-related substances into Schedule I.
  • SAMHSA will provide enhanced technical assistance to states who have existing State Opioid Response funds, and will host peer learning forums, national policy academies, and convenings with organizations distributing naloxone beginning this spring.
  • By this summer, the Federal Bureau of Prisons will ensure that each of their 122 facilities are equipped and trained to provide in-house medication-assisted treatment (MAT).
  • This spring CMS will provide guidance to states on the use of federal Medicaid funding to provide health care services—including treatment for people with substance use disorder—to individuals in state and local jails and prisons prior to their release. California is the first state to receive approval for a similar initiative.

Mental Health

  • CDC plans to launch a new campaign to provide a hub of mental health and resiliency resources to health care organizations in better supporting their workforce.
  • The Department of Education (ED) will announce more than $280 million in grants to increase the number of mental health care professionals in high-need districts and strengthen the school-based mental health profession pipeline.
  • HHS and ED will issue guidance and propose a rule to make it easier for schools to provide health care to students and more easily bill Medicaid for these services.
  • The Administration is scheduled to propose new mental health parity rules this spring.
  • HHS will improve the capacity of the 988 Lifeline by investing in an expansion of the crisis care workforce; scaling mobile crisis intervention services; and developing additional guidance on best practices in crisis response.
  • HHS also plans to promote interstate license reciprocity for delivery of mental health services across state lines.
  • HHS intends to increase funding to recruit future mental health professionals from Historically Black Colleges and Universities and to expand the Minority Fellowship Program.
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), working with HHS and Defense, will launch a program for states, territories, Tribes and Tribal organizations to develop and implement proposals to reduce suicides in the military and among veterans.
  • VA will also increase the number of peer specialists working across VA medical centers to meet mental health needs

Cancer Moonshot

  • The President called on Congress to reauthorize the National Cancer Act to overhaul cancer research and to extend the funding for biomedical research established in the 21st Century Cures Act.
  • The Administration will take steps to ensure that patient navigation services are covered by insurance. This could require legislation depending on which type on insurance an individual has.

Health care costs

  • Urging Congress to pass legislation to cap insulin prices in all health care markets. Expanding the $35 insulin cap to commercial markets will require the 60 votes in the Senate.

Home and community services

  • Working with Congress to approve legislation to ensure seniors and people with disabilities can access home care services and to provide support to caregivers.

HMA and HMA companies are closely monitoring these federal policy developments. We can assist healthcare stakeholders in responding to the immediate opportunities and challenges that arise and contextualize these actions for longer-term strategic business and operational decisions.

If you have questions about these or other federal policy issues and how they will impact your organization please contact Andrea Maresca (amaresca@healthmanagement.com) or Liz Wroe (elizabeth.wroe@leavittpartners.com).

Delaware substance use disorder treatment system needs assessment

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This week, our In Focus highlights a Health Management Associates Institute on Addiction (HMA IOA) report, Delaware Substance Use Disorder Treatment System Needs Assessment, published in June 2022. HMA IOA conducted a statewide three-county substance use disorder (SUD) treatment system needs assessment in Delaware. This project began in November 2021 and was primarily funded by New Castle County with contributions from Kent and Sussex counties. The goal was to review the current state of the SUD treatment ecosystem, identify strengths and gaps collecting input from as many Delawareans across multiple sectors as possible, and make actionable recommendations to build a more robust and sustainable future state system.

The final analysis included interviews with key stakeholders, focus groups, a survey of all licensed SUD providers, claims data analysis, and a comparison of Delaware’s public (e.g., Medicaid) outpatient and residential SUD reimbursement rates with selected regional states. This approach provided a unique cross-sector view of where the most significant opportunities for improvement and investment may rest.

The areas of greatest experienced need in the system were reported as: inadequate treatment beds, especially for some populations, like children and youth; lack of residential services for adults, especially those on Medicare and without insurance; needed supports for those experiencing negative impacts from social determinants of health (SDOH), like transportation and housing needs; lack of consistent access and care coordination; lack of adequate reimbursement to sustain the system or expand the treatment system; the need for trauma-informed care (TIC); and the need for more harm reduction and prevention strategies, including greater access specifically to Narcan 4mg Nasal Spray or its generic equivalent.

The study found that Delaware is meeting only 15 percent of SUD treatment needs and only meeting five percent of the need for the highest-intensity services, including inpatient treatment.

The results also showed an apparent discrepancy between what the state is working hard to implement to address the SUD and overdose crisis in Delaware and the community’s perception of, or lived experience with, those SUD treatment services and supports. Additionally, HMA IOA heard about many treatment system strengths from interviewees, town hall participants, and focus groups and included recommendations that are meant to leverage those existing strengths in the future treatment system.

Click here to read the report.

Early bird registration discount expires July 11 for HMA conference on the future of publicly sponsored healthcare, October 10-11 in Chicago

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Be sure to register for HMA’s 2022 Conference by Monday, July 11, to get the special early bird rate of $1,695 per person. After July 11, the rate is $1,895.

Nearly 40 industry speakers, including health plan executives, state Medicaid directors, and providers, are confirmed for HMA’s The New Normal: How Medicaid, Medicare, and Other Publicly Sponsored Programs Are Shaping the Future of Healthcare in a Time of Crisis conference, October 10-11, at the Fairmont Chicago, Millennium Park.

In addition to keynote sessions featuring some of the nation’s top Medicaid and Medicaid executives, attendees can choose from multiple breakout and plenary sessions on behavioral health, dual eligibles, healthcare investing, technology-enabled integrated care, social determinants of health, eligibility redeterminations, staffing, senior care, and more.

There will also be a Pre-Conference Workshop on The Future of Payment Reform: Delivering Value, Managing Risk in Medicare and Medicaid, on Sunday, October 9.

Visit our website for complete details: https://conference.healthmanagement.com/ or contact Carl Mercurio at cmercurio@healthmanagement.com.  Group rates and sponsorships are available. The last HMA conference attracted 500 attendees.

State Medicaid Speakers to Date (In alphabetical order)

  • Cristen Bates, Interim Medicaid Director, CO Department of Healthcare Policy & Financing
  • Jacey Cooper, Medicaid Director, Chief Deputy Director, California Department of Health Care Services
  • Kody Kinsley, Secretary, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
  • Allison Matters Taylor, Medicaid Director, Indiana
  • Dave Richard, Deputy Secretary, North Carolina Medicaid
  • Debra Sanchez-Torres, Senior Advisor, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • Jami Snyder, Director, Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System
  • Amanda Van Vleet, Associate Director, Innovation, NC Medicaid Strategy Office, North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services

Medicaid Managed Care Speakers to Date (In alphabetical order)

  • John Barger, National VP, Dual Eligible and Medicaid Programs, Humana, Inc.
  • Michael Brodsky, MD, Medical Director, Behavioral Health and Social Services, L.A. Care Health Plan
  • Aimee Dailey, President, Medicaid, Anthem, Inc.
  • Rebecca Engelman, EVP, Medicaid Markets, AmeriHealth Caritas
  • Brent Layton, President, COO, Centene Corporation
  • Andrew Martin, National Director of Business Development (Housing+Health), UnitedHealth Group
  • Kelly Munson, President, Aetna Medicaid
  • Thomas Rim, VP, Product Development, AmeriHealth Caritas
  • Timothy Spilker, CEO, UnitedHealthcare Community & State
  • Courtnay Thompson, Market President, Select Health of SC, an AmeriHealth Caritas Company
  • Ghita Worcester, SVP, Public Affairs & Chief Marketing Officer, UCare
  • Mary Zavala, Director, Enhanced Care Management, L.A. Care Health Plan

Provider Speakers to Date (In alphabetical order)

  • Daniel Elliott, MD, Medical Director, Christiana Care Quality Partners, eBrightHealth ACO, ChristianaCare Health System
  • Taylor Nichols, Director of Social Services, Los Angeles Christian Health Centers
  • Abby Riddle, President, Florida Complete Care; SVP, Medicare Operations, Independent Living Systems
  • David Rogers, President, Independent Living Systems
  • Mark Sasvary, Chief Clinical Officer, CBHS, IPA, LLC
  • Jim Sinkoff, Deputy Executive Officer, CFO, SunRiver Health
  • Tim Skeen, Senior Corporate VP, CIO, Sentara Healthcare
  • Efrain Talamantes, SVP & COO, Health Services, AltaMed Health Services Corporation

Featured Speakers to Date (In alphabetical order)

  • Drew Altman, President and CEO, Kaiser Family Foundation
  • Cindy Cota, Director of Managed Medicaid Growth and Innovation, Volunteers of America
  • Jesse Hunter, Operating Partner, Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe
  • Bryant Hutson, VP, Business Development, MedArrive
  • Martin Lupinetti, President, CEO, HealthShare Exchange (HSX)
  • Todd Rogow, President, CEO, Healthix
  • Joshua Traylor, Senior Director, Health Care Transformation Task Force
  • James Whittenburg, CEO, TenderHeart Health Outcomes
  • Shannon Wilson, VP, Population Health & Health Equity, Priority Health; Executive Director, Total Health Care Foundation

Quality standards in addiction care

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Across the healthcare landscape, quality standards are in place to ensure patients are receiving safe, appropriate, evidence-based, and standardized care that is tailored to their individual needs and symptomology.   

A significant gap has long existed in the treatment of substance use disorders (SUD), as there was no standardized method to provide treatment based on an individual’s needs at that moment, meaning people seeking treatment often received care that was either too intense or not intense enough, preventing them from attaining sustained recovery.

To create standardized treatment protocols and build additional credibility around programs, the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) developed criteria based on a holistic, multidimensional assessment[1] to determine what level of care (LOC) an individual needs. This development was revolutionary as it was the first time the field agreed on established criteria. After 35 years of improvement and refinement, the ASAM Criteria has become the national standard.

Learn More about ASAM Level of Care Certification

While many providers have adopted the ASAM criteria, and most regulators and payers require its use to determine the LOC a person may need, a significant gap still persists in ensuring services are delivered with fidelity to the criteria. As a result, those seeking treatment for themselves or a loved one continue to face challenges identifying a setting that provides evidence-based treatment focused on their specific needs. 

To close this gap, ASAM partnered with CARF International, the leading accreditor of behavioral health services, to develop criteria that demonstrates providers are, in fact, delivering the LOC for which they are admitting persons. Programs that are providing levels of residential care can be certified for three levels including: 3.7- Medically Monitored Intensive Inpatient Services, 3.5- Clinically Managed High  Intensity Residential Services, and 3.1- Clinically Managed Low Intensity Residential Services.

By achieving the ASAM LOC certification, residential treatment programs can establish themselves as high quality SUD providers and ensure future program licensing as well as future funding from states, and private and public payors. This certification demonstrates that facilities are delivering the appropriate care to the appropriate person at the appropriate time. 

Preparing for certification is different from preparing for licensure in that a program must take an in-depth look at their clinical practice to ensure alignment with the ASAM criteria.

Because of our long and proven track record of helping clients prepare for, and secure, NCQA, AAAHC and URAC accreditation as well as deep expertise in SUD programs and treatment, HMA was selected by ASAM as a preferred partner to provide technical assistance and usher programs through the certification process as well as help address shortfalls and gaps in programs and care.

Our team has the right mix of clinical and operational knowledge, training, and frontline experience to guide clients through the certification process and help build better systems of care and accountability from the ground up.

HMA has the depth and breadth of services across the healthcare spectrum, and we are uniquely positioned to help organizations address gaps identified in the certification process and improve care by ensuring services are delivered in fidelity to the LOC at which a person presents.

HMA’s Institute on Addiction is also able to provide a full complement of services and support to residential providers including ASAM LOC clinical expertise, developing policies and procedures, building and operationalizing clinical programs, and improving revenue cycle, operations, and as well as payor contracting strategies.

Certification is really step number one. Utilizing HMA’s “Survey Ready Model,” we will identify ways to build quality into everyday practice allowing programs to stay on top of – and ahead of – requirements. 

[1] https://www.asam.org/asam-criteria/about-the-asam-criteria

Behavioral health crises drive bipartisan action in Congress

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Agreement about the severity of the nation’s mental health and substance use disorder crises is rising above the partisan politics in Congress. In fact, these are among a handful of issues driving work on bipartisan legislation across all the key House and Senate committees with jurisdiction over behavioral health programs and policies this year.

On May 18, the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved the “Restoring Hope for Mental Health and Well-Being Act of 2022” (H.R. 7666). This legislation incorporates a collection of bipartisan bills to update and reauthorize over 30 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) programs addressing the mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) crisis. The bill also advances initiatives to strengthen the 9-8-8 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline implementation efforts, invest in the crisis response continuum of care, and support strategic opioid crisis response plans among numerous other policies. Energy and Commerce is one of several House committees planning to advance behavioral health bills this year.

U.S. Senate committee leaders have been similarly engaged in developing bipartisan proposals to address mental health and substance use disorders. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) and Finance committee leaders are expected to reveal their proposals as soon as this summer. The Finance Committee’s proposal will focus on Medicare, Medicaid, and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) policies and could reflect findings from the committee’s report, “Mental Health Care in the United States: The Case for Federal Action.” Similarly, HELP members Sens. Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) introduced the Mental Health Reform Reauthorization Act to extend several expiring mental health programs, which could be incorporated in that Committee’s comprehensive proposal. Across committees, there has been an interest in strengthening parity, supporting integration of primary and behavioral health care, increasing access to youth mental health screenings, scheduling fentanyl analogues, and easing requirements for prescribing Medication Assisted Treatment.

What To Expect

Congressional leaders have consistently expressed their desire to advance bipartisan legislation to address the urgent needs and gaps in the mental health and SUD care delivery systems, as well as support education and research.  While these are key areas to watch, the diminishing number of legislative days on the congressional calendar and climate surrounding November’s mid-term elections create uncertainty for the timing and scope of Congress’ work. It remains to be seen whether a package of health care proposals, such as reauthorization of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s user fee programs, the Cures 2.0 legislation to advance biomedical research, mental health and substance use disorder legislation, and the PREVENT Act could be sent to President Biden’s desk before the end of September.

HMA companies are supporting clients impacted by the policy changes being discussed and the program funding addressed in these legislative proposals. Understanding the landscape for federal change allows state and local governments and stakeholders to plan for and shape these opportunities. For more information, please contact Andrea Maresca, Principal, Federal Policy, HMA; Matt Gallivan, Director, Leavitt Partners; and Laura Pence, Director, Leavitt Partners.

HMA Launches Novel Project ECHO for MOUD in County Jails

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Aimed at shifting and improving the delivery of addiction treatment within county jails, Health Management Associates (HMA) will partner with the Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (W/B HIDTA) and Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office to deliver a novel Project ECHO clinic. Funded by W/B HIDTA to support county jails in their region, the Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) in County Jails ECHO Clinic will provide participants with HMA training specifically focused on initiating or expanding the use of MOUD within their facilities. The project will broaden county knowledge and understanding of MOUD and its place in the criminal justice system, increase the use of MOUD with evidence-based and emerging promising practices, and promote a culture that supports MOUD in jails.

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A Short-Term Path to Avoid ACA Uncertainty as the Pandemic Continues

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In this week’s In Focus section, Health Management Associates (HMA) Managing Director MMS Matt Powers, Senior Consultant Kaitlyn Feiock, and Regional Vice President Kathleen Nolan look at the future of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). On November 10, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) heard oral arguments for California v. Texas, challenging the constitutionality and severability of the ACA.  This challenge became possible after the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which zeroed out the individual mandate penalty for not purchasing health insurance.  While most experts agree that an entire invalidation of the ACA is the least likely outcome based on the oral arguments, some uncertainty remains and more than $100 billion federal funds are at risk. The ACA standardized insurance rules offset premium costs for many individual market consumers and provided authority and funding for Medicaid Expansions in the overwhelming majority of states. The ACA also included other provisions that may be at risk but are not the subject of this note, such as the creation of Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) and the Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office, as well as demonstration authority that has led to the creation of numerous coverage models.  As states, Congress, and the federal executive branch face the possibility that the ACA may not survive in its present form, what mitigation strategies are available at the state and federal levels to stabilize uncertainties and protect against abrupt coverage changes?

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Highlights from Kaiser/HMA 50-State Medicaid Director Survey

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This week, our In Focus section shares highlights and key takeaways from the 20th annual Medicaid Budget Survey conducted by The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) and Health Management Associates (HMA). Survey results were released on October 14, 2020, in two new reports: State Medicaid Programs Respond to Meet COVID-19 Challenges: Results from a 50-State Medicaid Budget Survey for State Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021 and Medicaid Enrollment & Spending Growth: FY 2020 & 2021. The reports were prepared by Kathleen Giff­ord, Aimee Lashbrook, and Sarah Barth from HMA and by Elizabeth Hinton, Robin Rudowitz, Madeline Guth, and Lina Stolyar from the Kaiser Family Foundation. The survey was conducted in collaboration with the National Association of Medicaid Directors.

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Leaders in Justice and Child Welfare Systems Explain How HMA-Developed MAT Training Can Keep Families Together

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Focused on ongoing support and solutions for those living with opioid use disorder (OUD), Health Management Associates (HMA) has developed a robust web-based training program about addiction and its treatment in the criminal justice and child welfare systems, including access to, and continued use of, medications for addiction treatment (MAT).

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