Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly articles from March 2002

Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly archives from March 2002

Study results make fiscal case for providing SA, MH interventions.(substance abuse and mental health)
March 4, 2002... It typically costs a managed care company 59 cents per member per month to provide brief, anti-alcohol counseling and advice to adults. Providing prenatal visits to mothers at risk from substance abuse typically adds $1.03 to the monthly, per...

FDA grants priority review to acamprosate: Drug would be only third approved for treating alcoholism.
March 4, 2002... New York City-based Forest Laboratories Inc. reported last week that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted a priority review to the company's new drug application (NDA) for acamprosate, a prescription medication under development...

Massachusetts officials react to complaints about payors.
March 4, 2002... The discovery that Massachusetts officials were asked by consumers to review health plan decisions about behavioral health more than any other health category in the past year has led to a stern warning to plans from three state agencies....

CASA report outlines extent of underage drinking problem: Center makes mistake on original prevalence estimate.(National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse)
March 4, 2002... The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University released a report last week that outlined the extent of underage drinking in this country. The report brings into focus results from five major surveys and...

Drug strategy must address needs of different populations. (From the Field).
March 4, 2002... With some fanfare, President Bush announced his national drug control strategy this week. Propelled by an opportunistic association between drug use and terrorism, President Bush did what many presidents before him have done -- strike a...

Study: Smoking relapse rates drop sharply after two years.
March 4, 2002... While relapse rates for smokers have always been extremely high, a new study suggests that staying away from smoking gets much easier after two years of abstinence, with more than 80 percent of smokers achieving long-term success. The...

Names in the News.(Roger A. Curtiss named president of the Association for Addiction Professionals)
March 4, 2002... Roger A. Curtiss has been named president of NAADAC, The Association for Addiction Professionals. Curtiss has been the treasurer for NAADAC for the last four years and previously served as Northwest Regional Vice President. He is currently the...

Report examines foundation-giving trends. (Resources).
March 4, 2002... The Foundation Center has released the 2002 edition of Foundation Giving Trends: Update on Funding Priorities. The report describes changes in foundation giving priorities between 1980 and 2000 by subject focus, recipient type, type of support,...

Californians' enrollment in HMOs decreases. (Briefly Noted).
March 4, 2002... The number of Californians enrolled in health maintenance organizations (HMOs) dropped below 50 percent in 2001, according to a survey released by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust. Enrollment in HMOs...

Federal appeals court overturns HUD policy. (Briefly Noted).(policy calling for eviction of occupants of public housing if drug use is found)
March 4, 2002... A federal appeals court overturned the "one strike you're out policy" of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, reported the Associated Press. The policy requires that an entire family be evicted from public housing if anyone,...

Public service ads receive little donated airtime. (Briefly Noted).
March 4, 2002... Broadcast and cable television networks donate 0.4 percent of all airtime to public service ads (PSAs) compared to 25 percent of all airtime that is filled with paid advertising and promotions, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report,...

Sen. Wellstone reveals that he has mild form of MS.(Paul Wellstone has mild form of multiple sclerosis)
March 4, 2002... Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone (D.-Minn.), a strong ally to the substance abuse treatment and prevention fields, revealed last week that he has a mild form of multiple sclerosis (MS). Wellstone had previously attributed the condition, which...

Heavy drinking may increase risk of liver cancer. (Briefly Noted).
March 4, 2002... Drinking large amounts of alcohol may increase the risk of liver cancer, according to findings reported in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Researchers found that, for both men and women, drinking more than 60 grams of alcohol a day was...

Nicotine withdrawal symptoms mirror inflammation. (Briefly Noted).
March 4, 2002... Nicotine withdrawal symptoms may be similar to an inflammatory response, according to research presented in a poster session at the annual meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT). Elizabeth Corwin and Laura Klein of...

Smoking may contribute to bone loss in men. (Briefly Noted).
March 4, 2002... Smoking may be linked to weaker bones in men, according to findings in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. French researchers found that men who smoked had a higher risk of spinal curvature than men who had never smoked. They...

In case you haven't heard.(Brazilian antismoking campaign)
March 4, 2002... According to Reuters, Brazil has become the second country to attach anti-smoking photographs to cigarette packs, reminding smokers of the dangers of their habit. The Brazilian government has also banned cigarette advertising in newspapers and...

Oregon's revamping reflects move to SA/MH integration.(substance abuse/mental health services)
March 11, 2002... As the former director of Oregon's mental health division, Barry S. Kast was initially skeptical about plans to combine his division, the state alcohol and drug program office and other health operations into one health services cluster. ...

Heroin, cocaine and alcohol most cited in drug-related deaths.
March 11, 2002... According to an analysis of medical examiner data conducted by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) researchers, heroin, cocaine and alcohol, when combined with other drugs, were most frequently involved in...

Providers could lose inmate treatment slots under N.Y. plan.
March 11, 2002... An element of New York Gov. George E. Pataki's proposed state budget would place more addiction treatment services for prison inmates under the direction of corrections staff, with the elimination of860 treatment slots administered by nonprofit...

Study links long-term marijuana use with memory impairment.
March 11, 2002... According to an article published .n the March 6 Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), long-term heavy marijuana .use can negatively affect performance on tests of memory .and attention. According to researchers, the impairments...

Television plays key role in shaping attitudes about addiction. (From the Field).
March 11, 2002... Grassroots movements around the country are gaining momentum in reducing the stigma of alcoholism and drug addiction by putting a face on recovery. People in recovery are witness to the fact that treatment works. But does this progress suffer...

Names in the news.(Victor F. Ganzi elected to board of directors of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse)(Gerald Lazar appointed medical director of Highland Ridge Hospital in Salt Lake City)
March 11, 2002... Victor F. Ganzi, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Hearst Corporation, has been elected to the board of directors of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. Ganzi began his...

Kaiser reports increased profits. (Briefly Noted).(Kaiser Permanente)
March 11, 2002... Kaiser Permanente, Californian largest health maintenance organization, showed a 16 percent increase in profit last year, reported the San Francisco Chronicle. The increase in 2001 marks two consecutive years of positive results for the...

Campaign to focus on alcohol and pregnancy. (Briefly Noted).
March 11, 2002... The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS) have launched a campaign to raise awareness of the risks associated with drinking and pregnancy. "Play it Safe....

Teens asking storeowners to shield alcohol, advertising. (Briefly Noted).(by moving them away from products that minors buy)
March 11, 2002... Teenagers involved in the Drug Intervention Group in Sonoma County, Calif. are asking storeowners to move alcohol away from candy or toys, reported the Santa Rosa Press Democrat. The project aims to control underage drinking by encouraging...

Fla. residents oppose addiction treatment center. (Briefly Noted).(new location of the Stewart-Marchman Center opposed)
March 11, 2002... Residents in Deltona, Fla. plan to fight a proposed addiction treatment center, reported the Orlando Sentinel. The Stewart-Marchman Center currently counsels outpatients from a storefront location on Deltona Boulevard. A larger facility is...

States consider raising cigarette taxes. (Briefly Noted).
March 11, 2002... Twenty-two U.S. states are considering an increase in cigarette taxes to generate revenue for budgetary needs as well as to discourage smoking, reported the Associated Press. "We've never seen as many states looking at increasing cigarette...

Advocates sue Mass. governor over tobacco funds. (Briefly Noted).(Jane Swift sued)
March 11, 2002... Public health, advocates, including the American Cancer Society, have asked the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to order Massachusetts Acting Gov. Jane Swift to restore $22 million for anti-smoking programs, reported the Associated Press....

Teens who exhibit problems more likely to smoke. (Briefly Noted).
March 11, 2002... Teenagers who display problem behaviors are more likely to smoke than theirpeers, according to findings in Nicotine & Tobacco Research. Researchers found that across all ethnic groups, teenagers who exhibited risk-taking behaviors,...

Non-prescription status doesn't affect nicotine therapy. (Briefly Noted).
March 11, 2002... The change in nicotine replacement therapy sales from prescription to over-the-counter did not affect smoking cessation in Massachusetts, according to findings in the American Journal of Public Health. Researchers observed no significant change...

San Diego approves medical-marijuana ID cards. (Briefly Noted).
March 11, 2002... The San Diego City Council gave initial approval to the creation of a program that would issue identification cards to residents who use medical marijuana, reported KGTV in San Diego. People with identification cards would be allowed to possess...

ONDCP Web site receives award. (Briefly Noted).(Office of National Drug Control Policy's National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign's Web site wins award)(www.TheAntiDrug.com)
March 11, 2002... PR Week, a national publication for public relations professionals, has named the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy's (ONDCP's) National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign's Web site the "New Media Site of the Year." The site,...

Adults believe marketing contributes to excessive drinking. (Briefly Noted).
March 11, 2002... Three out of four adults believe that tactics by some tour companies and segments of the alcohol industry contribute to excessive drinking and that steps should be taken to stop these marketing practices, according to a recent poll. The poll...

In case you haven't heard.(consumption of non-alcoholic beverages rose in Germany)
March 11, 2002... According to the German Association of Alcohol Free Beverages, consumption of non-alcoholic beverages in Germany rose in 2001, while Germans reduced their consumption of beer, wine and liquor. Consumption of alcohol-free beverages, which...

Modest state grant fuels innovative dual-diagnosis partnership.
March 18, 2002... A grant of just under $50,000 is allowing some residents of a Rhode Island therapeutic community (TC) program to overcome a major barrier to treatment success: co-occurring mental health problems that make it difficult for them to flourish in...

New faith-based legislation omits charitable-choice provision.
March 18, 2002... Revised legislation filed in the U.S. Senate last month to benefit faith-based social-service organizations has created a relative lack of stir within the substance abuse treatment and prevention field. That's partly because of the absence...

Members of Congress push for physician training in SA.(substance abuse)
March 18, 2002... Federal legislation has been reintroduced to make $9 million available for each of the next five years to train generalist health professionals in recognizing and treating substance abuse in patients and their family members. Citing...

Treatment used in dual-diagnosis pilot originated for borderline personality disorder.
March 18, 2002... Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), the modality on which treatment of dually diagnosed clients at Phoenix Houses of New England's Exeter, R.I., facility is based, is relatively new to the behavioral health field. A major study of the...

NIAAA funds five-year study on brain's response to alcohol.(National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism )
March 18, 2002... The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) announced last week a five-year, $50 million initiative to study the brain circuits and mechanisms and define behavioral responses underlying chronic and excessive alcohol...

Names in the news.
March 18, 2002... eGetgoing, the first accredited online behavioral health treatment provider, has named Michael Henry as chief operating officer. Prior to joining eGetgoing, Henry founded Medinah Management Company, a management advisory and consulting firm.

Applicants sought for leadership program. (Call for Applications).
March 18, 2002... The International Center for Health Leadership Development is accepting applications for the Health Partners Fellows Class of 2002 to 2004. The Health Partners Fellowship is a two-year leadership development program that seeks to prepare a...

Program seeks nominations for leadership award. (Call for Nominations).
March 18, 2002... The Robert Wood Johnson Community Health Leadership Program (CHLP) honors ten individuals each year for their work in creating or enhancing healthcare programs that serve communities whose needs have been ignored. Individuals working at the...

Web site focuses on Pain and the Law. (Resources).(Pain and the Law Web site )
March 18, 2002... The Center for Health Law Studies at Saint Louis University and the American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics (ASLME) have launched the Pain and the Law Web site at www.painandthelaw.org. The new site offers a comprehensive collection of...

Black Medicare beneficiaries receive poorer quality of care. (Briefly Noted).
March 18, 2002... Among Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in managed care plans, blacks received poorer quality of care than whites, according to an article in last week's Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). "Blacks were less likely than whites to...

Okla. Department seeks Prevention Manager. (Help Wanted).(Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services )
March 18, 2002... Are you looking to make a real difference? The Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services is recruiting a Prevention Program Manager. This position is responsible for the implementation of programs for the prevention and...

ASAM seeks executive vice president/chief executive officer. (Help Wanted).(American Society of Addiction Medicine )
March 18, 2002... The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) seeks to recruit an executive vice president/chief executive officer. ASAM is a medical society of 3,000 physicians from virtually every specialty and subspecialty. The executive vice...

Alcohol addiction strains Britain's health system. (Briefly Noted).
March 18, 2002... Britain's National Health System (NHS) spends $4.3 billion each year on problems related to alcohol, according to the report, Your Very Good Health, released by the advocacy group Alcohol Concern. Alcohol was linked to 33,000 deaths each year,...

Alcohol consumption may affect women's risk of hypertension. (Briefly Noted).
March 18, 2002... Light alcohol consumption may reduce a woman's risk of developing high blood pressure, while heavy drinking may increase the risk, according to an article in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Researchers found that compared with nondrinkers,...

Commission report criticizes Britain's treatment services. (Briefly Noted).
March 18, 2002... A lack of communication and poor organization are preventing individuals with chronic addiction from obtaining treatment in Britain, according to a report released by Britain's Audit Commission. The report, Changing Habits: The Commissioning...

In case you haven't heard.
March 18, 2002... A study recently published in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, found that drinking wine with a meal may help protect the brain from mental decline associated with aging. However, too much alcohol can make the brain more...

SAMHSA program cancellation reflects shift in agency's philosophy, mission.(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration cancels Comprehensive Community Treatment Program)
March 25, 2002... Agency to work closer with NIH The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) last month announced last month the cancellation of the research-oriented Comprehensive Community Treatment Program, administered by its...

Parity legislation moving forward without SA inclusion.(substance abuse)
March 25, 2002... Once again, momentum for parity legislation is moving forward this year without inclusion of substance abuse as part of its coverage. A significant development for substance abuse treatment advocates is that U.S. Rep. Marge Roukema...

Report analyzes impact of lifetime welfare ban on women.(Life Sentences: Denying Welfare Benefits to Women Convicted of Drug Offenses)
March 25, 2002... The first national analysis documenting the impact of a lifetime welfare ban on women incarcerated for drug abuse was released last month by the Sentencing Project. The report analyzes the harmful effects to women, their children and their...

ONDCP to receive $1.8 million for agency contract overcharges.(White House Office of National Drug Control Policy)
March 25, 2002... The U.S. Department of Justice announced last month that a New York City-based advertising agency will reimburse the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) $1.8 million to resolve claims that the agency overcharged the...

Managed care company creates 'parity-ready' benefit package.(PacifiCare Behavioral Health)
March 25, 2002... Anticipating the day when comprehensive mental health parity becomes federal law, managed behavioral health care company PacifiCare Behavioral Health (PBH) has announced a benefit package for health plans and employers that includes...

Study: Internet gambling may indicate more serious problem.
March 25, 2002... According to a study published in this month's Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, people who use the Internet to gamble may have a more serious gambling problem than people who gamble in other ways do. The study warns that the explosive...

George Halvorson. (Names in the News).(named chairman and chief executive officer of Kaiser Permanente)
March 25, 2002... George Halvorson has been named chairman and chief executive of Kaiser Permanente, based in Oakland, Calif. Halvorson has been the chief executive of Health Partners, the second largest HMO in Minnesota.

Obituary.(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's John M. Eisenberg)(Obituary)
March 25, 2002... John M. Eisenberg passed away on March 10 at the age of 55. He died at his home in Potomac, Md. after a yearlong illness caused by a brain tumor. Eisenberg served as director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) since 1997....

NCQA tool calculates savings for employers. (Resources).(National Committee for Quality Assurance Quality Dividend Calculator tool now available)
March 25, 2002... The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has released the final version of its Quality Dividend Calculator (QDC) (patent pending), a free, interactive, online tool that demonstrates how choosing a higher-quality health plan can help...

Study analyzes use, decisions of external review programs. (Briefly Noted).
March 25, 2002... External review programs that resolve disputes between health plans and consumers grant relief to about half of the consumers who file appeals, according to a report from the Kaiser Family Foundation. Researchers found that health plan denials...

Policy research may go unread by officials. (Briefly Noted).
March 25, 2002... More than a third of the health policy research received by state policy makers goes unread by officials, according to findings reported in Health Affairs by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC). Telephone interviews with almost...

Conn. plans to enforce cigarette sales law. (Briefly Noted).
March 25, 2002... Connecticut is working with federal authorities to enforce a federal law that will allow tax officials to identify residents who have purchased tax-free cigarettes online or through the mail. The Connecticut Department of Revenue Services (DRS)...

Looser marijuana laws could save Britain money. (Briefly Noted).
March 25, 2002... Britain could save $71 million a year and reduce the time police spend on paperwork if the government relaxed its marijuana laws, reported Reuters. Researchers at South Bank University's Criminal Policy Research Unit found that 69,000 people...

Campaign to target teen smokers in Ohio. (Briefly Noted).
March 25, 2002... Ohio has implemented a statewide counter-marketing campaign to discourage smoking among teens, reported the Ohio State University Lantern. The $1.3 million campaign will target teens through television, radio, online sources, shopping malls,...

Inhalant use more popular than Ecstasy, OxyContin. (Briefly Noted).
March 25, 2002... Inhalant use may be a bigger problem than Ecstasy or OxyContin, according to the National Inhalant Prevention Council (NIPC). In 2000, there were 16,702,000 lifetime inhalant users, compared to 6,400,000 Ecstasy users and 400,000 OxyContin...

Coverage for cessation could save many lives. (Briefly Noted).(insurance coverage for smoking cessation programs)
March 25, 2002... About 100,000 fewer lives would be lost to smoking-related deaths cumulatively over the next 20 years if comprehensive insurance coverage was available for existing smoking-cessation programs, according to findings in Tobacco Control....

In case you haven't heard.
March 25, 2002... According to the New York Post, Academy Award-winning actor Anthony Hopkins plans to sue British tabloids that published a speech he made at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting about his battle to stay sober. "Sir Anthony is very upset about this,"...

Christopher D. Smithers Foundation. (Names in the News).
March 25, 2002... The Christopher D. Smithers Foundation will present R. Brinkley Smithers Awards to Elaine Stritch and Joseph Pursch at the 3rd annual Spring Awards Luncheon hosted by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence and its New York...

Rhode Island Family Court. (Names in the News).(Buddy Croft elected secretary of the Congress of State Drug Courts)
March 25, 2002... Buddy Croft, chief of staff for the Rhode Island Family Court, was elected secretary of the Congress of State Drug Courts.