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CEO Update | 29

ASAM and CARF Announce New SUD Treatment Delivery Certification The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) and the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) have announced a new national certification program for addiction treatment programs that will “provide an independent, comprehensive assessment of an individual treatment program’s fidelity to a specific level of care as outlined in The ASAM Criteria.” This new certification, which ASAM and CARF anticipate piloting in early 2019, will be based on Level 3 (3.1, 3.5, and 3.7) of the ASAM Criteria which covers residential treatment programs. To obtain certification, programs will need to demonstrate to CARF that they have the capacity to deliver services at the level of care defined by The ASAM Criteria based on a scoring methodology developed by ASAM and CARF. Programs will then submit applications to CARF directly and CARF will independently perform the certification process, including reviewing individual provider applications and conducting site visits. Each certification will be valid for up to three years, at which time the program may reapply. NABH and Hospital Groups Send Letter on Interoperability of Health Information This week NABH joined with other major hospital associations in sending a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar which expressed concerns about the use of the Medicare and Medicaid Conditions of Participation (CoPs) and Conditions for Coverage (CfCs) to promote interoperability of health information.   The letter reads in part “While we applaud the agency’s work to promote interoperability, we believe that revisions to the CoPs that require health information exchange between hospitals and community providers and between hospitals and patients are not the appropriate mechanism to advance interoperability… the use of the CoPs/CfCs runs counter to the administration’s important efforts to reduce regulatory burdens and advance patients’ access to information, improve quality and reduce costs.”   In addition to asking HHS to not pursue this approach, the letter urges Secretary Azar to work with the provider community to bolster the advances already underway in information exchange among providers, between providers and community entities, and with patients and their families, rather than imposing new regulatory requirements on providers. Click here to read to full letter.   Mary Mayhew Named New Director of Federal Medicaid A former top aide to the Governor of Maine, Mary Mayhew, has been selected by the Trump administration to be the deputy administrator and director of Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Mayhew served as the health commissioner for six years in Maine and lost her recent bid to succeed Paul LePage as governor in the June Republican primary. She now replaces Brian Neale, the Trump appointee who left in February. FDA Considers Increasing Number of Over-The-Counter Drugs The FDA plans to release a proposed rule next summer that would allow more drugs to be available to consumers without a prescription from a healthcare professional (also known as non-prescription or over-the-counter drugs). The proposal, which was mentioned in the semiannual update on regulatory actions, would permit some products to be over-the-counter if companies take additional steps to ensure consumers can appropriately decide whether the medicine is right for them and how to use the treatment. Naloxone, the overdose reversal medication, is among those that the FDA has indicated may become available in this manner. California Governor Signs New SUD Treatment Laws Late last month California Governor Jerry Brown signed four new addiction treatment laws which ban patient brokering, strengthen licensure requirements, and increase penalties against SUD treatment facilities. Nominations Due October 31 for 2019 Board Chair-Elect and Board Members This week NABH sent a nomination form to members that seeks nominations in the single-slate ballot for NABH Board positions in 2019. NABH asks members to help identify potential candidates for the Board Chair-Elect position and for two Board seats that will become available next year. The Selection Committee is particularly interested in identifying senior managers who represent the broad diversity within the NABH membership, including different levels of care, organizational structures, and geographical locations. In your nomination, please attach a curriculum vita (CV) for each person you recommend. You are welcome to nominate yourself or others. Please return the form (and all nominees’ CVs) by Wednesday, Oct. 31 to maria@nabh.org, or mail your materials to NABH, ATTN: Maria Merlie, 900 17th Street, NW, Suite 420, Washington, DC 20006. For questions or comments about CEO Update, please contact Scott Dziengelski.