Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly articles from February 2008

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly archives from February 2008

National youth media campaign focuses on prescription drug abuse.
February 4, 2008... The national youth anti-drug media campaign launched yesterday by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) is hoped to make a dent in the number-one growing category of abused drugs: prescription medicines. The first ad, a...

Kansas providers, officials examine drop in youth services in managed care.
February 4, 2008... In a scenario unfolding in a fashion similar to that of other states that have moved to a managed care system for Medicaid behavioral health services, addiction treatment agencies in Kansas say they are beginning to see some progress after six...

Cable show on 'celebrity rehab' draws NAATP criticism.(National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers)(Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew)
February 4, 2008... A reality show about detoxing and treating celebrities is coming under fire from field groups. The National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP) has complained in writing to cable network VH1 over the presentation of addiction...

RCSP grant program faces cuts.(Recovery Community Support Program)(Brief article)
February 4, 2008... Support for recovery within the community and from peers contributes to long-term recovery, but except for grants from the federal Recovery Community Support Program (RCSP), funding is scattershot. Cuts to this RCSP, however, are threatening...

Senate considers legislation to boost American Indian healthcare.(BRIEFLY NOTED)(Brief article)
February 4, 2008... The U.S. Senate is considering new legislation that Senate Indian Affairs Committee Chairman Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) said would make progress toward resolving the "crisis" in American Indian healthcare. The legislation would increase screening...

Drug Policy Alliance criticizes Schwarzenegger's cuts to Prop 36.(STATE WATCH)(Arnold Schwarzenegger)(Brief article)
February 4, 2008... Following California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's announcement earlier this month to cut the state's 2008-09 budget by 10 percent across the board, the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) lamented the cut's impact on Proposition 36, total funding of...

Johnny Allem.(NAMES IN THE NEWS)(Brief article)
February 4, 2008... Johnny Allem will retire from the role of President and CEO of the Johnson Institute by the end of 2008 to assume the role of President Emeritus. The Johnson Institute was founded in 1966, and since then has "pioneered in better practices and...

Coming up ...(substance abuse treatment conferences and seminars)(Brief article)(Calendar)
February 4, 2008... The National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs will hold its national conference in Savannah, Georgia on February 7-8. For more information, go to www.natsap.org. The Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) will hold...

In case you haven't heard ...(Brief article)
February 4, 2008... Last week President Bush added comments on the role of faith in his past struggles with alcohol. The AP reported that Bush appeared particularly introspective when speaking with two graduates from the Jericho Program, a project of Episcopal...

OSI announces $10 million RFP seeking ways to close the treatment gap.(Exclusive News)(Open Society Institute )(Report)
February 11, 2008... The Open Society Institute (OSI) today issued a request for proposals (RFP) for its new $10 million program aimed at closing the addiction treatment gap. Applicants for the grants will be asked to focus on two main areas: creating awareness of...

Grim budget proposal from President Bush: 'unique' $20 million incentive for block grant.(Exclusive News)(Report)
February 11, 2008... The Bush Administration released its budget proposal for fiscal year 2009 last week, and overall the news is grim--there is a $198 million cut to the field, compared to a proposed decrease of $160 million last year. "It's just more of the...

Faces and Voices campaign mobilizes voters on several fronts.(Exclusive News)(Report)
February 11, 2008... Building on momentum achieved during events held in some of the early presidential primary and caucus states, the recovery community organization Faces & Voices of Recovery is intensifying its Recovery Voices Count campaign as the presidential...

Analysis indicates genetic factor affects naltrexone response.(Exclusive News)(Report)
February 11, 2008... A variant in an opiate receptor gene appears to play a pivotal role in the extent to which individuals with alcohol dependence improve under the medication naltrexone, indicates an analysis of research data published in the February 2008...

Topiramate study leads to questions, commentary from NIAAA leader.(Exclusive News)(Report)
February 11, 2008... A study published last fall that generated optimism about the addition of the drug topiramate (Topamax) to the arsenal of anti-alcohol medications has generated scrutiny and questions among some medical professionals, including concern over...

RWJF announces Tobacco Policy Change Initiative grants.(BRIEFLY NOTED)(Robert Wood Johnson Foundation )(Brief article)
February 11, 2008... In its fourth and final round of funding as part of its Tobacco Policy Change Initiative, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has announced new grant awards totaling almost $600,000 to support community advocacy groups that promote policies...

Study finds drug craving begins "outside awareness".(BRIEFLY NOTED)(Brief article)
February 11, 2008... Patients often have difficulty determining when or why they began craving drugs, explains Nora Volkow, M.D., director the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), but an understanding of how the brain initiates craving is essential to treating...

Tennesseans call for Rep. Briley to step down.(STATE WATCH)(State Rep. Rob Briley)(Brief article)
February 11, 2008... Tennessee State Rep. Rob Briley (D-Nashville) made a formal apology before the House Chamber on January 21, asking his colleagues for forgiveness after an arrest and subsequent guilty plea for drunken driving last year. Briley admitted to being...

SAMHSA brochure: substance abuse treatment for adults in criminal justice system.(RESOURCES)(The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration )(Brief article)
February 11, 2008... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA's) Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) has announced the availability of a new consumer brochure for adults in the criminal justice system: Alcohol and Drug...

Institute for Addiction and Recovery at Rhode Island College.(RESOURCES)(Brief article)
February 11, 2008... On January 17, The Institute for Addiction and Recovery at Rhode Island College (RIC) was officially launched, its goal to bolster Rhode Island's capacity to aid both individuals and communities with addiction recovery. The Institute will serve...

In case you haven't heard ...
February 11, 2008... The Ministry of Defence of Scotland (MoD) is standing by its practice of securing treatment for drug-addicted soldiers before they are discharged, despite an unbending policy against the use of illegal drugs in the armed forces, reported the...

Coming up ...(Calendar)
February 11, 2008... The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) will hold one more free regional one-day Random Student Drug Testing Summit this year, in Indianapolis, Indiana on February 13. The summit will address legal issues and program...

When state SA agencies merge: leadership and partnerships called on to replace autonomy.(Report)
February 18, 2008... The trend in state governments is definitely away from the cabinet-level single state authority (SSA) for substance use disorders. The more common scenario is a SSA in a department that has merged with mental health, or been incorporated into...

CADCA speaker: coalitions must diversify community outreach strategies.(Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America )
February 18, 2008... Buoyed by federal money and the omnipresent threat of emerging drug trends to community safety, the universe of community anti-drug coalitions has grown to more than 5,000 strong. Yet it remains true in many communities that these grassroots...

Consolidation and cutbacks in proposed DOJ budget.(Report)
February 18, 2008... Funding for substance abuse-related topics within the Department of Justice (DOJ) faces extensive changes under the Administration proposed fiscal year 2009 budget, released Feb. 4. Field organizations are still analyzing the full impact of the...

San Diego's Project Connect: services for people with developmental disabilities.(FROM THE FIELD ...)(Report)
February 18, 2008... In 2006 The California Endowment funded an unprecedented effort, Project Connect, in San Diego County (population 2.9 million) to improve linkages between alcohol/drug treatment and recovery services for people with developmental disabilities...

Relapse rate low in post-liver transplant recovering drinkers.(BRIEFLY NOTED)(Brief article)
February 18, 2008... A recently published meta-analysis of 54 studies finds that following an organ transplant, the risk of relapse is relatively low for recovering alcoholics (just under 6 percent in a given year, or 2.5 percent for heavy alcohol users), as well...

Illinois Meth Project launches prevention campaign.(STATE WATCH)(Report)(Brief article)
February 18, 2008... Illinois law enforcement has reported that methamphetamine use and production in the state has reached "critical levels." And the 2007 Illinois Meth Use & Attitudes Survey finds that one in four teens say it would be easy for them to acquire...

NACoA online prevention course for clergy.(RESOURCES)(Report)(Brief article)
February 18, 2008... The National Association for Children of Alcoholics (NACoA) is offering a second online course designed to help clergy gain knowledge about prevention of alcohol and drug abuse and the skills to promote prevention among the children and...

SAMHSA grants for treatment drug courts.(CALL FOR APPLICATIONS)
February 18, 2008... SAMHSA is accepting applications to expand/enhance substance abuse treatment services to "problem-solving" courts that "use the treatment drug court model to provide alcohol and drug treatment, recovery support services supporting substance...

In case you haven't heard ...
February 18, 2008... According to a February 7 New York Times report, a small group of scientists (and likely a larger group of traders) believes that the human brain responds to risky stock trading in the same way it responds to drugs or sex--by craving more....

Coming up ...(Calendar)
February 18, 2008... Faces & Voices of Recovery will hold a one-hour teleconference,"Recovery Community Centers: Anchored in the Recovery Community, Part 1: Their Mission and Organization," on February 27 at 3pm EST (the 2nd in the four-part 2008 Recovery Advocacy...

Reform in N.C.: substance abuse treatment providers losing out to state system.(Report)
February 25, 2008... North Carolina's addiction treatment providers, who have been struggling to assimilate into the state's far-reaching reforms begun in 2001, are facing multiple challenges: a payment system perceived as overloaded with paperwork, rates that are...

Process improvement in L.A. County may reverberate across California.
February 25, 2008... Befitting its reputation as a trendsetter, California is playing a leading role in fueling national interest in process improvement activities designed to help addiction treatment agencies improve clients' access to services and retention in...

TEDS data highlights: alcohol admissions down.(Report)
February 25, 2008... Alcohol still accounts for more treatment admissions than any other single substance-40 percent--according to the most recent data from the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), a nationwide survey of treatment facilities conducted by the...

Risk of victimization for women who drink freshman year.(BRIEFLY NOTED)(Report)(Brief article)
February 25, 2008... In the first study to compare the risk for physical and sexual assault based on changes in a young woman's drinking patterns during the transition from high school to college, investigators with the Research Institute on Addictions at...

Cephalon hired lobbyists to promote Vivitrol.(BRIEFLY NOTED)(Report)
February 25, 2008... According to a disclosure posted online by the U.S. Senate public records office, the biotechnology firm Cephalon last year paid the public relations firm Capitol Decisions to lobby the federal government regarding the approval and launch of...

Tennessee's Centerstone to expand Project SELF.(STATE WATCH)(Brief article)
February 25, 2008... Tennessee's Davidson County is among the top three high-risk regions in the state for adolescent substance abuse. Centerstone, the largest behavioral healthcare provider in Tennessee, reports an acute shortage of treatment and out-reach...

Kentucky pilots treatment program for non-violent offenders.(STATE WATCH)(Report)(Brief article)
February 25, 2008... Kentucky Circuit Judge William B. Mains, who estimates that drug offenses or substance abuse are responsible for 75 percent of his caseload, is in support of a treatment-over-incarceration approach to the state's over-crowed jails. CNHI News...

Jack Kemp.(NAMES IN THE NEWS)(Substance Abuse Services for the State of Delaware)
February 25, 2008... Jack Kemp, recently retired Director of Substance Abuse Services for the State of Delaware, has joined the Treatment Research Institute (TRI) as Senior Policy Associate. In 2001 Kemp partnered with TRI on the evaluation of a statewide...

In case you haven't heard ...
February 25, 2008... Popular rapper Pimp C's music was laced with references to narcotic cough syrups, which he allegedly favored for getting high. The Washington Post on February 12 reported on February 12 that the L.A. County coroner has ruled that Pimp C's (Chad...

Coming up ...(Calendar)
February 25, 2008... NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals, together with the National Association for Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP),will host the 2008 Advocacy in Action Conference on March 9-11 in Arlington, Virginia.Visit http://naadac.org...