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Substance Use Disorder

RCPA is excited to share the growing list of sponsors and exhibitors who are committed to supporting our 2025 Conference Strive to Thrive! This event, which will be held September 9 – 12 at the Hershey Lodge, is a highlight for the PA health and human services fields. We would like to thank the organizations who have committed their support already; you can view them below and on our Conference website!

There are still many opportunities available for sponsorship and exhibit booths, and we encourage your organization to view this year’s Sponsors, Exhibitors, and Advertisers Brochure, which features detailed lists of all the ways your organization can thrive at our conference. These include networking opportunities in Connections Hall and new sponsorship items. Please be aware booth self-selection will also be available for exhibitors and exhibiting sponsors. In order to be considered for self-selection, a completed contract with payment must be submitted.

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Sponsors, exhibitors, and advertisers who wish to be listed on the website, the mobile app, and in the conference program must submit all materials by August 20. The association looks forward to welcoming you at the conference! Space and opportunities are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis, and no reservation is considered complete without payment. Please contact Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator, with any questions.

View our sponsors and exhibitors at our Conference website!

HARRISBURG, PA — A bipartisan group of Pennsylvania lawmakers joined members of the Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association (RCPA), the Commonwealth’s largest health and human services trade association, at a press conference at the state Capitol in support of vital disability and human service programs. These programs serve millions of Pennsylvanians annually and play a transformative role in their lives.

At the March 26 press conference, RCPA and lawmakers pushed for continued funding and improved payment models, including Medicaid capitation, as well as decreasing administrative burden in the safety net system, as part of any final 2025/26 budget adopted by the General Assembly. These initiatives will help improve services and make the system work better for everyone. They also highlighted the need to invest in the workforce, ensuring strong support for licensed clinicians, direct support professionals, counselors, case managers and support/service coordinators, and peers.

Richard S. Edley, PhD, President and CEO of RCPA, spoke on behalf of members and those who rely on health and human services. Fady Sahhar, MBA, PhD, RCPA Director of Physical Disabilities & Aging, also communicated the need for Medicaid preservation and continued funding.

Richard S. Edley, PhD, President & CEO Fady Sahhar, MBA, PhD, Director of PD&A

RCPA members also raised their voices to stress the importance of not only maintaining but improving the systems in place. Speakers included Melva Fair, an RCPA Board Member and CEO of Community Living and Support Services (CLASS), and Annie Smith, Director of Early Intervention at RCPA member Strawberry Fields. Also in attendance were RCPA Board Members Susan Coyle of Chartiers Center and Gretchen Kelly of PLEA.

Melva Fair Annie Smith Susan Coyle and Gretchen Kelly

Representatives from both sides of the aisle in the House and Senate spoke in agreement with RCPA’s message, voicing continued support for vital services in Pennsylvania.

Representative Doyle Heffley Representative Joseph Hohenstein Senator Tim Kearney

Last but not least, RCPA thanks everyone who attended this year’s Capitol Day. Your support and presence made this year one of our most successful press conferences to date!

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

CARF International requests feedback on their newly released standards for disorders of consciousness. These standards were created with input from the field, and CARF is interested in feedback from providers and other stakeholders. You are invited to share within your network including with families/caregivers and those with lived experience.

Questions can be directed to:
Terrence Carolan, MSPT, MBA
Managing Director | Medical Rehabilitation and Aging Services
CARF International

Provide Feedback Here

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced yesterday that the public health emergency declaration addressing the nation’s opioid crisis has been renewed, allowing sustained federal coordination efforts and preserving key flexibilities that enable HHS to continue leveraging expanded authorities to conduct certain activities in response to the opioid overdose crisis.

The public health emergency, first declared under President Trump in 2017, was set to expire on March 21, 2025. The renewal extends the emergency for 90 days.

More information about the declaration is available on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration’s (SAMHSA) website.

The 2025 American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (AATOD) Conference will be held October 4 – 8 in Philadelphia at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown. The 2025 conference theme is “The Evolving Field of Opioid Treatment.”

Early registration is open now through June 30. Register here.

The aim of the conference is to educate and promote acceptance and integration of medication-assisted treatment options by patients, families, clinicians, the medical system, judicial systems, government, policymakers, social service administrations, and the general public. Presenters will disseminate innovative, evidence-based initiatives and treatment techniques to better serve patients and providers, improve program development and administration, promote integration across the continuum of care, and enhance patient outcomes to assist communities in developing an effective response to this crisis.

The Pennsylvania Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence (PATOD), the state chapter of AATOD, is a member of RCPA. RCPA member Josh Nirella, Regional Director for Acadia’s Comprehensive Treatment Centers, is Conference Chair. RCPA member Pam Gehlmann, Regional Director for Pinnacle Treatment Centers, is Host Committee Chair.

More information is available on the 2025 AATOD Conference website.

The Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) is pleased to announce that the draft application for the Fiscal Year 2025 Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) grant is now available for public comments. The draft application has been posted for public review on the Mental Health in PA website.

The PATH grant is a non-competitive formula grant available to all states and territories by the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of 1990. PATH programs serve individuals with serious mental illness experiencing or at imminent risk of homelessness. The PATH grant application is submitted to the federal agency Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) annually.

Please note that this is the Pennsylvania application to SAMHSA. This is not a request for new PATH project proposals.

The PATH Application public comment period will remain open until 10:00 am Friday, March 21, 2025. If you have any questions or comments, please send them to Lauren MacWithey, Pennsylvania PATH Grant Coordinator, via email.

Please contact RCPA Policy Associate Emma Sharp with any additional questions.