SAMHSA administrator nominated: Cline from Oklahoma: strong mental health background.(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Terry L. Cline)

Terry L. Cline, Ph.D., the Oklahoma Secretary of Health as well as Commissioner of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS), may be the next administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). President Bush nominated Cline on November 9, the day before the Veteran's Day holiday and just after the Democrats won the majority in Congress.

Not well known to the addiction treatment field outside of his home state of Oklahoma, Cline's background is in mental health. Overall, he receives high marks from those in the field who know him, but there's some anxiety that substance abuse might be given short shrift within SAMHSA compared to mental health. In Oklahoma in particular, there is some concern that mental health counselors may end up being the only ones who can meet the state's new licensure requirements.

"Personally, I think highly of him," said Brent Katigan, program director of Valley Hope Association outpatient programs in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Wichita (Kan.) "But he was born and raised mental health. I have …