Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly articles from April 2007

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly archives from April 2007

Co-occurring disorders can be treated within SAPT block grant.(substance abuse prevention and treatment )
April 2, 2007... Treatment of co-occurring disorders--in which patients have substance abuse and mental health problems--can be paid for within the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant, but with reauthorization of the Substance Abuse and...

Advocates optimistic as Second Chance Act clears House committee.(SAMHSA Reauthorization Looming)
April 2, 2007... While mindful of the hurdles they still must overcome, substance abuse treatment advocates last week had reason to feel energized over a U.S. House committee's unanimous passage of the treatment-heavy Second Chance Act to combat recidivism...

Doctor's sentence highlights challenges of methadone treatment.(Marc Shinderman)
April 2, 2007... Marc Shinderman, M.D., was sentenced to six months' incarceration last week in Portland, Maine, for using a colleague's name to write prescriptions for benzodiazepines. This was discovered after a raid on the for-profit CAP clinic by the Drug...

Recovery month slated for elimination by president's proposed budget.(Brief article)
April 2, 2007... Spending bills are under way in Congress for fiscal year 2008, which starts in October 2007. And it looks as if September 2007 will be the last Recovery Month, unless there is some change made as budget deliberations proceed. The White...

SAMHSA announces $96 million in Access to Recovery grants.
April 2, 2007... The federal government will be awarding 18 new grants totaling $96 million for the Access to Recovery (ATR) initiative, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced March 23. Grant applications are due June...

ADHD, family stress and alcoholism links studied.(attention deficit hyperactivity disorder)(Brief article)
April 2, 2007... Although attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as well as parental alcoholism, are "well-known risk factors" for offspring substance use, Brooke Molina and her colleagues have published one of the first studies to examine their...

Scientists work toward less addictive painkillers.(Brief article)
April 2, 2007... Efforts are under way to create painkillers and novel means of dispensing for a lower risk for addiction and abuse. For example, Pain Therapeutics is in late stage clinical trials with Remoxy, an abuse-resistant gelatin version of oxycodone...

LA board approves needle exchange program.(Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors)(Brief article)
April 2, 2007... In an effort to stem the spread of HIV and other blood-borne diseases, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted on March 13 to approve a $500,000 certified needle exchange program, paid for by tobacco settlement funds and targeting...

U.K. study recommends classifying alcohol and tobacco as dangerous drugs.(Brief article)
April 2, 2007... A newly published study suggests that Britain's current system for classifying dangerous substances should be restructured to include alcohol and tobacco--neither of which is currently classified as dangerous. The study implies that other...

Terri White.(NAMES IN THE NEWS)
April 2, 2007... Terri White, director of communications and public policy at the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS), has been promoted to commissioner of the agency effective May 13. She replaces Terry Cline, Ph.D., who...

Patricia Beauchemin.(NAMES IN THE NEWS)
April 2, 2007... Patricia Beauchemin has been named the new executive director of Therapeutic Communities of America (TCA), effective April 2. "She really likes our people!" is the way TCA management feels about Beauchemin, who comes to TCA from the National...

California Institute for Mental Health.
April 2, 2007... The California Institute for Mental Health (CIMH) will host the Seventh Annual California Information Management Conference, "Addressing the Needs of Mental Health, Alcohol and Other Drug Programs," on April 11-12 in Manhattan Beach, Cal. A...

Network for the Improvement of Addiction Treatment.
April 2, 2007... The Network for the Improvement of Addiction Treatment (NIATx) will hold its first annual summit, "Improving Access and Engagement in Addiction and Behavioral Health Treatment," on April 23-25 in San Antonio, Texas in partnership with the...

National Association of State Alcohol/Drug Abuse Directors.(Coming up)
April 2, 2007... The annual meeting of the National Association of State Alcohol/Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD), the National Prevention Network (NPN) and the National Treatment Network (NTN) will take place on June 7-10 in Burlington, Vermont. For more...

In case you haven't heard ...
April 2, 2007... When methadone was found in Anna Nicole Smith's refrigerator after she died suddenly on Feb. 8, many assumed that she had succumbed to an overdose. She did--to chloral hydrate. In fact, she was taking methadone for pain and had therapeutic...

New Hampshire issues ambitious blueprint for addiction prevention and treatment.
April 16, 2007... Big question mark: Funding A consensus group of treatment and prevention providers and government officials has produced a comprehensive "Alcohol and Drug Plan for New Hampshire." The plan is the first effort in which all groups working on...

Wyoming merges substance abuse and mental health units.
April 16, 2007... After almost a decade of two separate divisions--one for substance abuse, and one for mental health--Wyoming is returning to a merged system. In a change announced April 5, the Wyoming Department of Health's newly appointed deputy director...

Prop. 36 yields major savings when treatment is completed.
April 16, 2007... A cost analysis of the first two years of substance abuse treatment services funded as a result of California's landmark Proposition 36 initiative has found that for every dollar invested in treatment for eligible nonviolent offenders,...

False positives and false negatives found in youth drug tests.
April 16, 2007... A new study published in the April issue of the journal Pediatrics offers words of warning for those who support more widespread implementation of drug testing initiatives for youth. Examining random testing methods in an adolescent outpatient...

AATOD'S 5-year plan includes support for buprenorphine, risk planning.(American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence)
April 16, 2007... Last month, the American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD) board of directors approved a five-year plan (2007-2011) with a blueprint detailing initiatives in improving treatment quality, supporting patient advocacy,...

Fentanyl overdose responsible for recent deaths.(Brief article)
April 16, 2007... A coroner in Winnebago County, Wisconsin has attributed four accidental deaths by overdose over the past 6 months to abuse of fentanyl, a highly potent opiate prescribed in a patch form to treat chronic, severe pain, WBAY reported on April 10....

Arizona students arrested for sale of RX drugs.(Brief article)
April 16, 2007... Twelve high school students in Gilbert, Arizona have been arrested for sale of controlled substances, according to an April 6 Arizona Republic report. Gilbert Public Schools spokeswoman Dianne Bowers said that while the arrests are unfortunate,...

Sen. Biden would re-name NIDA and NIAAA.(Joseph Biden Jr.)(National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism)(Brief article)
April 16, 2007... In what Sen. Joseph Biden, Jr. (Dem-Del.) calls a "small but important step towards stripping away the social stigma surrounding the treatment of diseases of addiction," the senator has introduced legislation that would change the names of two...

Indiana insurance bill gains backers.(Brief article)
April 16, 2007... Indiana lawmakers have co-authored legislation that would overturn a 1947 law under which insurers can deny coverage to insured patients who have alcohol or other intoxicating substances in their blood when injured. Rep. Trent Van Haaften...

Researchers examine trends in stimulant use.(Brief article)
April 16, 2007... Based on drug treatment center admissions, researcher Tracy Gunter, M.D. and colleagues and found that more than half of stimulant users were "young" (aged 21-34) and 46 percent were female, according to a study from the University of Iowa...

Andrew Kessler.(NAMES IN THE NEWS)
April 16, 2007... Andrew Kessler, formerly government relations director for NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals, has formed his own consulting firm, Slingshot Solutions. (www.slingshotsolutions.net). It will specialize in consulting, lobbying...

SAMHSA grants for substance abuse treatment.(CALL FOR APPLICATIONS)
April 16, 2007... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has issued a call for applications for grants to expand substance abuse treatment capacity in targeted areas of need. SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment expects...

Network for the Improvement of Addiction Treatment.
April 16, 2007... The Network for the Improvement of Addiction Treatment (NIATx) will hold its first annual summit, "Improving Access and Engagement in Addiction and Behavioral Health Treatment," on April 23-25 in San Antonio, Texas in partnership with the...

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.
April 16, 2007... The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) will sponsor a summit on random student drug testing on April 24 in Las Vegas. For more information, go to www.randomstudentdrugtesting.com.

American Society on Addiction Medicine.(Coming up)
April 16, 2007... The American Society on Addiction Medicine (ASAM) will hold its 38th Annual Medical Scientific Conference in Miami on April 26-29. For more information, visit www.asam.org.

National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers.(Coming up)
April 16, 2007... The National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP) will hold its 2007 Addiction Treatment Leadership Conference on May 19-22 in San Diego. For more information, visit www.naatp.org/index.php.

In case you haven't heard ...
April 16, 2007... President Bush proclaimed April 12, 2007 National Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) Day. The announcement last week said that "each year, D.A.R.E. teaches millions of children across our country how to resist drugs and violence."...

First national standards for co-occurring credential comes from IC & RC: issue may help, or may just raise cost of treatment.(International Certification and Reciprocity Consortium)
April 23, 2007... Last week the first nationwide standards for a co-occurring credential were released by the International Certification & Reciprocity Consortium/Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse (IC & RC). This is a controversial move for the addiction treatment...

New Prop. 36 report likely to shape debate on funding, accountability.
April 23, 2007... Although California officials and supporters of the Proposition 36 effort to divert nonviolent drug offenders to treatment are still studying details of a newly released final report in a five-year analysis of the program, many already have...

Certification, licensure and credentialing.
April 23, 2007... * Certification is usually a voluntary process, required in some states but not all. A professional can choose to pursue certfication; many times, an employer will require it. Certification is done by a nongovernmental entity, like the...

Standards for new CCDP certifications.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... Below are the two sets of standards--one for bachelor's level, one for master's level--for the new co-occurring certification. These are minimum standards approved by the IC & RC last week. The certification will be available by late 2007,...

Certified Co-Occurring Disorders Professional.
April 23, 2007... * Experience: 4,000 hours of co-occurring specific work experience and 2,000 hours of documented work experience in counseling in the last ten years. 6,000 hours total. * Education: A minimum of a Bachelor's degree in co-occurring disorder...

Certified Co-Occurring Disorders Professional--Diplomate.
April 23, 2007... * Experience: 2,000 hours of co-occurring specific work in the last ten years. * Education: Master's degree or higher in co-occurring disorder (COD) or behavioral science with a clinical application from a college or university that is...

Capoccia, formerly of RWJF, to oversee $10 million in OSI grants.(Open Space Institute, Victor Capoccia, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)
April 23, 2007... The Open Space Institute (OSI) in Baltimore has brought in Victor Capoccia, formerly of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), to oversee a $10 million initiative designed to close the treatment gap. George Soros, founder and chair of the...

Report recommendations focus on funding gaps, treatment completion.(Brief article)(Clinical report)
April 23, 2007... Wrapping up its five-year analysis of California's Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act (SACPA), the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Integrated Substance Abuse Programs issued recommendations in these areas at the end of its...

County gives $400,000 for Prometa treatment.(Pierce County Alliance)(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... The Pierce County Alliance in Washington State has been given $400,000 in county funds to give experimental treatment Prometa to 80 drug court defendants. "This is part of a criminal justice piece we're doing, applying the protocol to our...

Survey finds Illinois falling short on services.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... According to a survey commissioned by the Illinois Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Association (IADDA), in March close to 6,500 individuals in the state were forced to wait an average of 32 days before receiving substance abuse treatment....

Kansas to monitor pharmacists.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... Gov. Kathleen Sebelius signed into law April 10 a bill to combat prescription drug abuse by monitoring pharmacists. The law forms the Controlled Substances Monitoring Task Force. "Modern medicines can treat an array of conditions, but there are...

Former addicts mentor fellow mothers.(Mentor Moms)(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... In Washoe County, Nevada three former addicts with children of their own have formed a group, Mentor Moms, to support mothers who face losing their children due to addiction. The majority of these women are addicted to methamphetamine, a trend...

A new trend? Sober companions.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... Increasing numbers of recovering addicts are seeking the highly personal support of sober companions, who can assist with the transition from residential treatment or serve as an alternative to a formal program, according to a report in The New...

NIDA library closes due to budget cuts.(National Institute on Drug Abuse)(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... The group Substance Abuse Librarians and Information Specialist (SALIS) reported in its recent newsletter (Winter 2007) that the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Library will be closed as a result of National Institutes of Health (NIH)...

Competence skills mitigate social risk factors.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... Social risk factors will always be part of the dynamic in adolescent substance use, according to Gilbert J. Botvin, the senior author of a recently published study finding that social competence skills may mitigate such risk factors. Botvin and...

Survey: Offenders lack access to effective treatment.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... A recently published report of the results of the National Criminal Justice Treatment Practices Survey (NCJTPS), funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), found that although substance abuse problems are four times as common among...

NIDA webcast: Meeting on opioid addiction and pain treatment.(National Institute on Drug Abuse)(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has made available a webcast of its March 5 and 6 meeting, "Pain, Opioids, and Addiction: An Urgent Problem for Doctors and Patients." The goal of the meeting, NIDA writes, was to "bring together the...

SAMHSA: Emergency Response Grants.(GRANTS AND FUNDING)
April 23, 2007... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has announced the availability of Emergency Response Grants (SERGs), available as "funds of last resort" for governments having difficulty meeting community addiction and...

Common reasons, by diagnosis, for hospital stays.(Brief article)
April 23, 2007... * The most common MHSA disorders seen in hospital stays were mood disorders, substance-related disorders, delirium/dementia, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia. * One out of every 10 hospital stays was related to mood disorders (over 3.3...

American Society on Addiction Medicine.(Coming up)
April 23, 2007... The American Society on Addiction Medicine (ASAM) will hold its 38th Annual Medical Scientific Conference in Miami on April 26-29. For more information, visit www.asam.org.

National Institute on Drug Abuse.(Coming up)
April 23, 2007... The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) will sponsor a conference entitled "Drug Abuse and Risky Behaviors: The Evolving Dynamics of HIV/AIDS" on May 8-9 in Bethesda, Maryland. To register or for more information, visit...

National Association of State Alcohol/Drug Abuse Directors.(Coming up)
April 23, 2007... The annual meeting of the National Association of State Alcohol/Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD), the National Prevention Network (NPN) and the National Treatment Network (NTN) will take place on June 7-10 in Burlington, Vermont. For more...

National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.(Coming up)
April 23, 2007... The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) will sponsor a conference, "Double Jeopardy: Substance Abuse and Co-Occuring Mental Health Disorders in Young People," on October 18 in New York City. Keynote...

In case you haven't heard ...
April 23, 2007... Princeton University has "substance-free" housing, which is great for students who want to stay sober and be with like-minded dorm-mates. But this year, the process has a new twist. Previously, students who wanted to be in "sub-free" housing...