NABH Releases 2023 Advocacy Priorities
NABH this week released its 2023
advocacy priorities, which reflect the association’s mission and outline the actions NABH will take to achieve its goals.
Categorized under the headings “Mental Health” and “The Addiction Crisis,” NABH’s 2023 advocacy priorities include securing the promise of parity; persuading lawmakers to provide incentives for behavioral healthcare providers to establish and implement a solid behavioral health information technology infrastructure; advocating Congress to repeal the Institutions for Mental Diseases (IMD) exclusion; pushing the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to ensure payment rates provide adequate and appropriate reimbursement for opioid treatment program services; maintaining tele-behavioral healthcare services, and more.
Please review this document and share it with others. If you have questions, please contact
nabh@nabh.org.
FDA Approves First Over-the-Counter Naloxone Spray
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesday approved Narcan, 4 mg. naloxone hydrochloride nasal spray for over-the-counter (OTC), non-prescription use, making it the first naloxone product approved to use without a prescription.
Naloxone is a medication that reverses the effects of opioid overdose rapidly and is the standard treatment for opioid overdose. The FDA’s action clears the way for this life-saving medication to be sold directly to consumers in drug stores, convenience stores, grocery stores, gas stations, and online.
The move comes at a time when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released provisional
data earlier this month that showed 101,750 reported U.S. fatal overdoses in the 12-month period ending in October 2022, while the predicted number of fatal doses for that period is even higher at 107,669.
“As a physician, I have used Naloxone on people to reverse an opioid overdose hundreds of times and have witnessed firsthand its life-saving effects,” Rahul Gupta, M.D., director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, said in a statement this week. “FDA’s announcement to make Narcan available over-the-counter is an important step to make this medicine accessible to more people at a time when the majority of overdose deaths are being driven by illicit opioids like fentanyl,” he added. “This move will also build on the progress made under the Biden-Harris administration to get more Naloxone into communities, expand access to treatment for substance use disorder, and reduce the supply of illicit drugs, which has resulted in a decline or flattening of overdose deaths for seven months in a row.”
According to the FDA, the manufacturer determines the timeline for availability and price of this OTC product. Click
here to learn more.
SAMHSA Warns Providers and Grantees About Xylazine Risks
In a
letter this week, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) alerted providers to the risks of xylazine, a non-opioid agent increasingly found in combination with opioids such as fentanyl.
The letter said xylazine—which the FDA has not approved for use in humans—can cause
severe circulatory changes with devastating effects on human tissue, leading to painful open lesions, necrosis, and potentially limb loss.
“Practitioners must be aware of risks posed by xylazine and prepare to manage patients accordingly, Miriam Delphin-Rittmon, Ph.D., assistant secretary for mental health and substance use, wrote to providers. “SAMHSA’s goal with this alert is to provide information about the consequences of xylazine exposure, what practitioners can do to mitigate harm, and how SAMHSA is responding to this emerging public health challenge.”
Known as “tranq” or “tranq dope” in the illicit drug market, xylazine can cause drowsiness, lethargy, and, in rare instances, apnea and death.
SAMHSA encourages healthcare professionals and patients to report adverse events resulting from possible xylazine exposure to their local health department, poison center, or the American Association of Poison Control Centers at 1-800-222-1222. FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event reporting may be completed online at
www.fda.gov/medwatch.
SAMHSA Announces Three Recovery-Related Funding Opportunities
SAMHSA this week announced it will accept applications through May for three separate funding opportunities to implement and strengthen recovery services in communities.
The programs include the
Treatment, Recovery, and Workforce Support grant to implement evidence-based programs to support individuals in substance use disorder (SUD) treatment and recovery to live independently and participate in the workforce; the
Recovery Community Services Program-Statewide Network, intended to strengthen community-based recovery organizations, their statewide networks of recovery stakeholders, and specialty and general healthcare systems as key partners in delivering state and local recovery support services; and the
Recovery Community Services Program, which would provide peer recovery support services to individuals with SUD or co-occurring substance use and mental disorders, including those in recovery from these disorders.
SAMHSA will accept applications for all three funding opportunities until May 30.
Reminder: SAMHSA Funding Opportunity to Establish or Implement Opioid Recovery Centers
SAMHSA has announced it will grant up to $1.4 million in two awards to establish or implement comprehensive treatment and recovery centers that provide a spectrum of treatment, harm reduction, and recovery support services to address America’s opioid crisis.
Applications are due Tuesday, May 16. Click
here to learn more and apply.
Advertise in the 2023 NABH Exhibitor and Sponsor Guide!
NABH will distribute the
2023 NABH Exhibitor and Sponsor Guide to all registrants at the 2023 NABH Annual Meeting from June 12-14, 2023 at the Salamander Washington, DC. Be sure your organization is included in it!
All ads are due by April 21, 2023. Please click
here for details about advertising options, requirements, payment, and more.
The association also will send the guide to all NABH members after the meeting and post it on the NABH Annual Meeting webpage.
Register and Reserve Your Hotel Room Today for the 2023 NABH Annual Meeting!
Please join us in Washington, DC from
June 12-14, 2023 for this year’s NABH Annual Meeting at the Salamander Washington, DC (formerly the Mandarin Oriental hotel).
NABH’s theme this year is
Securing the Promise of Parity, which recognizes the
Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act’s (MPAEA) 15
th anniversary and that we have more work to do to ensure the landmark law is implemented fully.
Our preliminary program will be available soon. Meanwhile, please visit our Annual Meeting
homepage to register, reserve your hotel room, and view our Annual Meeting At-a-Glance.
We look forward to seeing you in Washington!
Reminder: Please Submit Data to Enhance NABH’s Managed-Care Advocacy Efforts
Thank you to all members who have submitted data to NABH’s denial-of-care portal. Your data will help NABH highlight problems in the field related to health plan denials and timeliness.
Several policymaking entities are interested in these data, which could support advocacy for expanded access to care. For new participants, please e-mail
Emily Wilkins, NABH’s administrative coordinator, for support.
Fact of the Week
Between 2009 and 2019, the number of pediatric mental health hospitalizations increased by 25.8%, and these hospitalizations accounted for a significantly higher proportion of pediatric hospitalizations, according to a
study published in
JAMA this week.
For questions or comments about this CEO Update, please contact Jessica Zigmond.