The National Impact   An update for friends of the National Advocacy Campaign for Smarter and More Effective Alcohol and Drug Policies Feburary/March 2012 In This Issue Coalition for Whole Health Comments on Recent Essential Health Benefits Bulletin Updated Recommendations on Necessary MH/SUD Services for EHB packages New Resources in SAAS' Policy and Advocacy Toolkit Victory in FY 2012 Budget, With FY 2013 Process Gearing Up Work to Eliminate Legal and Policy Barriers for People in Recovery Fighting Proposals to Drug Test Unemployment Insurance Beneficiaries LAC and SAAS, Around the Nation Coming Soon Quick Links The Roadmap for Smarter and More Effective Alcohol and Drug Policies Opportunities and Threats Join the Campaign Now!         Welcome back to "The National Impact," our e-newsletter to keep you updated on the campaign's advocacy efforts! Many thanks to all the supporters who have made our successes possible.  Together, we can dramatically alter the national landscape so that fewer people suffer from alcohol and drug problems, the addicted receive the care they need, and people in recovery can live healthy and productive lives.    Coalition for Whole Health Comments on Recent Essential Health Benefits Bulletin The Department of Health and Human Services released guidance on the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) Essential Health Benefit package (EHB) on Dec. 16. The EHB package will determine the health services, including the mental health (MH) and substance use disorder (SUD) services, that all health plans in the small group and individual markets will be required to cover beginning in 2014, as well as the minimum benefits for certain Medicaid beneficiaries.  When the ACA is fully implemented, it is estimated that 70 million individuals will be enrolled in health coverage subject to the requirements of the EHB. In its much-anticipated bulletin, HHS lays out a state-based process for defining the EHB based on the benefits currently provided by certain state and federal health plans.  As required by the ACA, the guidance mandates that all EHB packages include coverage for mental health and substance use disorders -- and at parity.  The guidance from HHS tells states how to develop the EHB, including which plans they use as benchmarks and how to supplement the required categories not provided by the benchmark plan.   Ensuring the EHB includes strong MH and SUD benefits has been a top priority for the Coalition for Whole Health, an umbrella of dozens of national MH and SUD prevention and treatment advocacy organizations co-chaired by Legal Action Center.  In the weeks before the release of the EHB guidance, Legal Action Center, SAAS, and other CWH members attended HHS listening sessions and other meetings with key officials at HHS, SAMHSA, and ONDCP to advocate for strong benefits.  LAC Director Paul Samuels was also given a private briefing by the assistant secretary for planning and evaluation and top White House officials.  LAC and SAAS led the CWH in developing detailed comments in response to the proposal, which were signed by approximately 120 national, state, and local organizations and submitted to HHS on Jan. 31.  The comments advocated for HHS to provide aggressive oversight to ensure comprehensive coverage of each of the EHB's benefit categories, including the category requiring MH/SUD  benefits.  They also called on HHS to aggressively enforce MH/SUD parity compliance, to eliminate proposed state flexibility to benchmark EHB packages to potentially weaker small group health plans, to more clearly state the unique protections to the MH/SUD category provided by the parity law, and to ensure transparency and opportunities for provider and consumer input.   Updated Recommendations on Necessary MH/SUD Services for EHB packages The Coalition for Whole Health also developed a shortened and updated "EHB Consensus Principles and Service Recommendations" paper, which describes specific MH and SUD benefit recommendations that all EHBs should include to ensure adequate coverage.  The recommendations outline necessary benefits across the full continuum of care for MH and SUD and include appropriate benefits for each of several of the EHB categories, including the MH/SUD disorder category and those requiring coverage for prescription drugs, rehabilitative and habilitative services, pediatric services, preventive and wellness services, and chronic disease management.  The document also discusses how HHS and states should design and enforce the EHB in compliance with the ACA's requirements to extend the protections of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act to all small group and individual plans.   New Resources in SAAS' Policy and Advocacy Toolkit SAAS recently updated its Policy, Advocacy and Education Toolkit to include several new resources on essential health benefits, Medicaid, state-level work, parity implementation and enforcement, and more.  Stay tuned for more updates of the toolkit, a comprehensive resource on healthcare reform implementation for both national and state-level advocates and providers.   Victory in FY 2012 Budget, With FY 2013 Process Gearing Up On Dec. 23, the president signed into law the bill to fund the government through fiscal year 2012, which ends on Sept. 30, 2012.  Despite a very challenging fiscal environment, the field was very effective in fighting off significant funding cuts to critically important SAMHSA programming.  In particular, we were very pleased that Congress approved a $16 million increase to the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant.  Definitely a victory in this difficult funding environment! President Obama released his FY 2013 budget recently, and SAAS and LAC will be working with our national partners to develop recommendations, to provide information to the field, and to advocate with Congress to fight for the highest possible funding for SAMHSA programming in FY 2013.      Work to Eliminate Legal and Policy Barriers for People in Recovery Last fall, LAC developed a series of one-pagers on federal legal and policy barriers to education, employment, housing and public benefits for people with addiction and/or criminal histories.  Over the winter we shared these one-pagers, including our recommendations to reduce these barriers, with the attorney general's Cabinet-level Reentry Council.  LAC's one-pagers were then circulated to representatives from the involved federal agencies for response. Recently, LAC received a formal letter from the Reentry Council indicating that several of our recommendations were being implemented and that others were under consideration. We are excited to continue working with the Reentry Council to reduce barriers for our constituencies. Fighting Proposals to Drug Test Unemployment Insurance Beneficiaries LAC has worked with a number of allied state and national organizations over the winter to oppose new proposals to require drug testing of unemployment insurance beneficiaries. LAC recently worked with Congressional staff to respond at the federal level and developed a series of action alerts encouraging the field to weigh in about how these proposals are stigmatizing, not cost-effective, and unfairly penalize families and children who need assistance. We were very pleased to see a strong showing of support through a letter authored by 14 U.S. senators, unequivocally stating that eligibility for unemployment benefits should not be predicated on passing a drug test; however, the tax-extender legislation signed into law last week allows states to drug test people applying for unemployment benefits who were terminated from their most recent job because of drug use, and people who work in industries that regularly conduct drug testing. As the focus of this activity turns to the states, LAC will continue working with allies around the country to oppose these harmful, ineffective policies. LAC and SAAS, Around the Nation LAC and SAAS have participated in several important meetings and conferences in DC and around the country this winter, including: Meetings with senior officials at HHS, ONDCP, SAMHSA, and the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance; Presentations for national groups including TASC and Treatment Communities of America; and Presentations at state-wide conferences in Maryland, and Connecticut. Coming Soon In addition to our continued advocacy in the coming weeks and months, SAAS and LAC are also preparing for the SAAS Winter Meeting in Washington in late February, which will include a Hill Day for the SAAS board members on March 1. Look forward to updates on these activities in the next National Advocacy Campaign Update.   Join the Campaign!!   These advocacy efforts are just the beginning. As a friend of the substance use disorder field and as someone who believes in the power of advocacy and the reality of recovery, we know that you will find the National Advocacy Campaign for Smarter and More Effective Drug and Alcohol Policies as exciting as we do. In order to make the work of the campaign possible, please consider joining the effort to change alcohol and drug policies. Become a member by making a secure online contribution today (and select the National Advocacy Campaign from the drop-down box). Thank you for your support! Innovators Illinois Alcoholism & Drug Dependence Association • Jason R. Flom   Champions The Association of Substance Abuse Programs in Texas • Community Partnership of Southern Arizona • The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation • Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceutical    Founders Advocates for Human Potential, Inc. • Agency for Community Treatment Services, Inc. •  Association for Behavioral Healthcare of Massachusetts • Baltimore Behavioral Health • Bridges for America • Terry Brown • Charles Bush California Association of Addiction Recovery Resources • CARON-Comprehensive Addiction Treatment Recovery for Life • Randolph E. Cloud • Colorado Association of Alcohol & Drug Service Providers, Inc. • John Coppola • County Alcohol and Drug Program Administrators Association of California • DePaul Treatment Centers, Inc. • Richard J. Dillon • Drug and Alcohol Service Providers Organization of Pennsylvania • Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association • Florida Certification Board • Debra Gilmour • Adam Harrington • Cynthia Humphrey • JBS International, Inc • Robert B. Levy • Maine  • Mississippi Association of Addiction Services  •  Richard J. Nance • National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence - Maryland • Nevada Alliance for Addictive Disorders Advocacy, Prevention and Treatment Service • Ohio Council of Behavioral Health and Family Services Providers • Operation PAR, Inc. • Oregon Prevention Education and Recovery Association • Proaction Behavioral Health Alliance • Michael F. Reagan • Rosecrance Substance Abuse Treatment Centers • Paul N. Samuels • Arthur J. Schut • Julie Shepard • Spectrum Programs, Inc/Miami Behavioral Health Center, Inc. • David Sterling • The Harbor Behavioral Health Care Institute • The Refuge, a Healing Place • TopLine Professional Strategies, LLC • Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities of Illinois • Utah Behavioral Healthcare Network • Thomas Van Wagner • Becky Vaughn • Washington Association of Alcoholism and Addiction Programs   Friends BayCare Behavioral Health  •  Central Florida Behavioral Health Network  •  Drug Abuse Treatment Association  •  EPIC Community Services •  Franklin-Williamson Human Services, Inc. • Gateway Community Services  •  Patrick Maloy • Craig Peck • The South Suburban Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse • Sutton Place Behavioral Health  •  Parker Thomson  •  Tri-County Human Services  •  The Village South (Westcare)     Donors Herbert Barish McKyle Clyburn • Thomas M. Del Vecchio • George Demarest • The Janssen Foundation • Beth Lang • Bruce Lesman • Barrett L. Silver • John B. Trammell • Arthur Wallace Thank you for supporting the National Advocacy Campaign!