Substance Use Disorder

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is conducted annual and provides nationally representative data on the use of substances (tobacco, alcohol, and drugs), substance use disorders, those who received substance use treatment, and mental health issues and services. This survey is conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

Five notices of funding opportunities (NOFOs) for grant programs was announced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The $73.4 million in total is aimed at preventing substance misuse and treating OUD and is aligned with the Biden-Harris administration's current efforts. 

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released a notice of proposed rulemaking that would allow certified opioid treatment programs to begin prescribing the drug via audio-only or video-enabled telehealth. See additional information under Policy Updates below. The proposed changes come on top of recent findings by HHS of the positive impact of its revised Practice Guidelines for the Administration of Buprenorphine for Treating Opioid Use Disorder that removed two longstanding requirements for obtaining a waiver to treat up to 30 patients with buprenorphine: 1) the requirement for specific training, and 2) the need for otherwise eligible clinicians to certify their ability to provide or refer patients for counseling and other services. Rural primary care providers have obtained the DEA waiver at a lower rate than urban clinicians; decreased burden and greater flexibility in the guidelines, along with broader use of telehealth could help close that gap.

The Community Engagement: An Essential Component of an Effective and Equitable Substance Use Prevention System guide was prepared for SAMHSA. The guide focuses on community engagement to bring together skills, knowledge, and experience which can help in evidence-based programs and policies.

This week, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, through the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), announced proposed changes to the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Patient Records under 42 CFR part 2 (“Part 2”), which protects patient privacy and records concerning treatment related to substance use challenges from unauthorized disclosures.

To more effectively address known barriers to treatment for substance use disorder (SUD), policy researchers looked at feedback from 27 community-based programs serving predominantly people of color across the U.S. Beyond poverty and racism, providers describe challenges retaining staff with appropriate language and cultural skills as well as a complex patchwork of social skills. 

The Department of Health and Human Services today issued a notice of public rulemaking to improve the exchange of patient records used in the treatment of substance use disorder. HHS proposes provisions to implement section 3221 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to ensure providers have more complete and timely information when treating patients with SUD, including updating patient consent requirements and aligning disclosure requirements with those under HIPAA regulations. AHA is among a host of organizations who have pushed for such changes, including one which would enable providers to get a patient’s consent just once to share substance use records for treatment and health care operations. HHS will accept comments for the next 60 days.

This webinar provided RCORP grantees with the tools to complete a disparities impact statement, to support efforts to address populations in rural communities that have historically suffered from poorer health outcomes and health inequities as a part of the prevention, treatment, and recovery of SUD/OUD.

The Disparities Impact Statement (DIS) template is a deliverable for this project that you will be required to complete. There was a webinar discussing the DIS for all relevant cohorts on November 15, 2022. This webinar provided RCORP grantees with the tools to complete a disparities impact statement, to support efforts to address populations in rural communities that have historically suffered from poorer health outcomes and health inequities as a part of the prevention, treatment, and recovery of SUD/OUD. We strongly encourage you to review these documents or listen to the recording when it is posted to the RCORP- TA portal at a later date. Please be in contact with your Technical Expert Lead (TEL) with any questions. 

In June 2021, HRSA launched an effort to improve access to substance use disorder treatment by paying for providers who are waivered to prescribe buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder.  Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) still have the opportunity to apply for a $3,000 payment on behalf of each provider who trained to obtain the waiver necessary to prescribe buprenorphine after January 1, 2019.