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Tags Posts tagged with "DDAP"

DDAP

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The Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP), in partnership with Shatterproof, is in the process of implementing the ATLAS (Addiction Treatment Locator, Analysis, and Standards) platform in Pennsylvania over the coming months.

ATLAS is a free, multi-state, web-based platform that will help ensure that Pennsylvanians are able to quickly and easily access addiction treatment resources and information that meets their individual needs. Shatterproof will be contacting providers with instructions for the completion of the Treatment Data Survey. Provider participation in ATLAS is not mandatory. To this point, nearly 40 providers have completed the survey.

The following resources are available to help complete the survey.

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A new training program, entitled “Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies for Treating Individuals with Substance Use Disorder,” is now available. The training consists of an online module through TrainPA and in-person/virtual skills training sessions. It contains four levels of trainings, each building upon one another. The four levels are:

  • Level One: Foundational Information on Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies for Treating Individuals with Substance Use Disorder
  • Level Two: Conceptualization and Skills Application
  • Level Three: Demonstration and Evaluation
  • Level Four: Fidelity and Support.

More information is available here.

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DDAP has identified a need for substance use disorder (SUD) drop-in centers, which provide harm reduction support services and connections to recovery and treatment services, in areas of the commonwealth where overdose death rates are highest. DDAP will provide funds to existing drop-in centers to expand their services and increase overdose prevention and community-driven harm reduction. Physical locations of the existing drop-in centers can be permanently fixed or temporary, community-based pop-up locations.

More information about the grant is available here. A project summary and budget template are available on DDAP’s website.

All applications should be submitted electronically no later than 12:00 pm, Monday, December 13, 2021.

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Photo by Joakim Honkasalo on Unsplash

Tomorrow’s hearing on the request for a preliminary injunction against the ASAM transition in the lawsuit filed against the Department of Human Services and the Department of Drug & Alcohol Programs by the Drug and Alcohol Service Providers Organization of Pennsylvania (DASPOP) will be live-streamed here.

The hearing is set for 10:00am Thursday, Oct. 28 in Courtroom 3001, 3rd Floor of the Pennsylvania Judicial Center, 601 Commonwealth Avenue, Harrisburg.

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The House Human Services Committee passed three key bills today.

House Bills 1561 and 1563 were passed unanimously out of committee. Both bills will align Pennsylvania’s confidentiality laws with federal laws. HB 1563 will effectively eliminate 4 Pa. Code § 255.5. The full House is scheduled to consider both bills tomorrow. RCPA supports both bills.

In addition, House Bill 1995 passed out of committee on a 15-10 party-line vote in which no Democrats voted for the bill. The bill would require the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) to promulgate regulations in instances where DDAP is implementing new or additional licensing requirements for drug and alcohol providers; new or additional drug and alcohol staff credentialing requirements; new or additional drug and alcohol counselor staffing ratios; and new or major programmatic changes and requirements imposed on drug and alcohol facilities. HB 1995 was drafted in response to requirements that go well beyond ASAM Criteria and are being implemented by DDAP as part of its transition to the ASAM Criteria.

RCPA supports the commonwealth’s transition to ASAM Criteria but does not support the overreaching Pennsylvania-specific mandates. RCPA today issued a press release supporting HB 1995.

In a related matter, on Thursday, October 28, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania will hear the Drug and Alcohol Service Providers Organization of Pennsylvania’s (DASPOP’s) lawsuit against DDAP and the Department of Human Service in its bid to stop the ASAM transition.

Contact Jason Snyder, Director of RCPA’s Drug and Alcohol Division, with any questions.

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Rep. Carrie Lewis DelRosso introduced legislation yesterday that would require the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs to promulgate regulations in any of the following instances that affect licensed drug and alcohol treatment providers:

  • The implementation of new or additional licensing requirements for drug and alcohol facilities;
  • The implementation of new or additional drug and alcohol staff credentialing requirements;
  • The implementation of new or additional drug and alcohol counselor staffing ratios; and
  • The implementation of new or major programmatic changes and requirements imposed on drug and alcohol facilities, including the requirement of adding programs that significantly increase the cost of delivering care and meeting staffing requirements.

The legislation includes any proposed regulatory requirement not currently in effect or any regulatory requirement that the General Assembly has delayed through legislation, meaning the PA-specific requirements of the ASAM transition could not be implemented until approved through a regulatory review process.

The House Human Services Committee is scheduled to vote on the bill Tuesday, October 26. Rep. Frank Farry, Chairman of the Committee, is a co-sponsor of the bill.

If the bill becomes law before January 1, it would bring much needed relief to a treatment system already struggling with major workforce issues and chronic underfunding.

Contact Jason Snyder, Director of RCPA’s Drug and Alcohol Division, with any questions.

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Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

The Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP), in partnership with Shatterproof, will be implementing the ATLAS® (Addiction Treatment Locator, Analysis, and Standards) platform in Pennsylvania over the coming months. This free, multistate, web-based platform will help ensure that Pennsylvanians are able to quickly and easily access addiction treatment resources and information that meets their individual needs. Shatterproof will be contacting providers later this month with instructions for the completion of the Treatment Data Survey. Provider participation in ATLAS is not mandatory.

For more information about the ATLAS implementation, including dates for ATLAS Provider Roundtable Webinars, please read DDAP’s letter.

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On Friday, October 1, the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) resubmitted to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) its Final-Omitted Regulations on Standards for Drug and Alcohol Recovery House Licensure, as well as its response to IRRC’s disapproval order of Aug. 24, 2021.

The regulations are publicly available on IRRC’s website.

The submitted regulatory package includes the updated regulations (p. 98–129), as well as:

  • a regulatory analysis (p. 1–12);
  • IRRC’s disapproval order (p. 86–92);
  • DDAP’s response to IRRC’s disapproval order (p. 93–97);
  • a preamble that includes public comments and DDAP’s response to comments (p. 48–85);
  • a sample recovery house licensing application (p. 13–14);
  • a sample recovery house licensing checklist (p. 15–22); and
  • additional DDAP forms (p. 23–35), as well as a description of forms that must be provided by the recovery house (p. 36–46).

The above linked documents reflect the changes made to the regulations since DDAP appeared at IRRC’s public meeting in July. The revised regulations are scheduled to be considered at IRRC’s next public meeting on Thursday, October 21.

Upcoming Timeline:

  • DDAP expects that the new regulations will be in effect by October 2021.
  • DDAP expects to require compliance with the new regulations by April 2022.

Which Recovery Houses Will Need a License?

Once the new licensing program is in place, drug and alcohol recovery houses must have a license to:

  1. Receive referrals from state agencies or state-funded facilities; or
  2. Receive federal or state funding to deliver recovery house services.

In addition, the law imposes two additional requirements on referrals to recovery houses:

  1. People whose treatment is funded with state or federal funds shall only to be referred to licensed recovery houses.
  2. Courts shall give first consideration to licensed recovery houses when residential recommendations are made for individuals under their supervision.

Additional information on drug and alcohol recovery house licensing can be found here.

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The Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) sent out guidance on June 14, 2021 regarding three temporary regulatory suspensions granted by the governor’s declaration of a disaster emergency due to the coronavirus pandemic. House Bill 1861, which was signed into law today by Governor Wolf, further extends those regulatory suspensions from September 30, 2021 until March 31, 2022 unless terminated sooner. In addition to the suspensions noted in DDAP’s previous communication, one additional regulatory suspension from the Department of State, also relevant to the field, is added to the chart below and also suspended until March 31, 2022.

Statute/Regulation Statute/Regulation Purpose Waiver benefit/explanation
28 Pa. Code § 715.16(e) Prohibits narcotic treatment programs (NTPs–methadone clinics) from permitting a patient to receive more than a 2-week take-home supply of medication. In response to COVID-19, SAMHSA is allowing up to 28 days of take-home medications for patients on stable dosages, if the physician deems appropriate.
28 Pa. Code § 715.9(a)(4) Requires NTPs to make a face-to-face determination before admission to treatment, for those clients who will receive buprenorphine treatment. In response to COVID-19, SAMHSA is allowing initial evaluations for a patient who will be treated with buprenorphine to be completed via telehealth.
28 Pa. Code § 715.6(d) Requires NTPs to have narcotic treatment physician services onsite. In response to COVID-19, SAMHSA is allowing initial evaluations for a patient who will be treated with buprenorphine to be completed via telehealth.
49 Pa. Code § 16.92(b)(1)

(Department of State)

 Before a patient can be prescribed any controlled substance in Pennsylvania, a person licensed to practice medicine and surgery in the commonwealth, or otherwise licensed or regulated by the State Board of Medicine, must take an initial medical history and conduct an initial physical examination,

unless emergency circumstances justify otherwise.

 In response to COVID-19, the Department of State suspended the initial medical history and physical examination requirement specifically for the treatment of opioid-use disorder with buprenorphine.

Please email the Bureau of Program Licensure or call (717) 783-8675 with questions.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP), along with partners from other state agencies and treatment providers across the continuum, is beginning a monthly ASAM technical assistance series. Each month, DDAP and its partners will present up-to-date information regarding ASAM alignment or will provide training on a specific topic related to ASAM alignment. This is a time-limited series running monthly from October 2021 to October 2022 with the purpose of providing resources, training, and information to support providers with ASAM alignment across all levels of care.

More information, including dates, times, and other frequently asked questions, is available here.

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