SearchNew York State Alcohol & Drug Training & Technical Assistance
About our Services | How To Get Help | Publications | Accomplishments
The Legal Action Center (LAC) provides education, training, and technical assistance to alcohol and drug treatment and prevention programs and other service providers, government officials, and policy makers on a wide range of issues. Each year, LAC assists over 350 agencies, through funding from the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, focusing principally on the areas of discrimination, confidentiality, and treatment reimbursement.
For more information on the legal services LAC provides to individuals with histories of alcohol or drug dependence in New York State, visit the NY Alcohol and Drug Legal Services section of this web site.
Discrimination: LAC assists organizations in helping their clients who face discrimination, combating discrimination the agency itself encounters in zoning or elsewhere, and avoiding discrimination in their own hiring and disciplinary practices. For frequently asked questions about discrimination against people with histories of alcohol and drug dependence, visit the NY Alcohol and Drug Legal Services section of this web site.
Confidentiality: LAC advises and provides training to alcohol and drug programs, government agencies, and others that work with people with or at risk for alcohol and drug problems on confidentiality of treatment and prevention records, including the requirements of federal regulations governing Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Patient Records (42 C.F.R. Part 2) and the new Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations (45 C.F.R. Parts 160 and 164).
Reimbursement: Welfare, Medicaid, insurance and managed care: LAC assists alcohol and drug programs in understanding the complex rules governing the receipt of both care and reimbursement.
How to Get Help
Agencies located in New York that need assistance on the legal issues described above may call the Legal Action Center at (212) 243-1313, Monday through Friday between 1 and 5 and ask for the “attorney on call.” Agencies who want information about organizing trainings should request to speak with the training coordinator.
LAC WILL NOT RESPOND TO REQUESTS FOR ASSISTANCE SENT BY E-MAIL TO THE LEGAL ACTION CENTER ADDRESS OR WEB SITE AND CANNOT SERVE "WALK-IN" CLIENTS.
Publications, Videos/DVDs, and Online Courses
Publications and Videos/DVDs for Sale
To order these publications and videos/DVDs, visit the Publications section of this web site. To order Online Courses, click here.
- Online Courses: Introduction to Confidentiality and Advanced Confidentiality
- Confidentiality & Communication: A Guide to the Federal Alcohol & Drug Confidentiality Law and HIPAA. Newly-revised edition.
- Confidentiality Training Series: A Guide to the Federal Drug and Alcohol Confidentiality Laws (3-Part Confidentiality Training Series) (1998) Available on DVD and VHS.
Free Publications Available
The Center publishes a variety of materials for individuals and agencies which give clear and thorough explanations of anti-discrimination and confidentiality laws. To download these and other free publications, visit the Publications section of this website:
- Are you... (Updated 2001) - Explains the steps individuals in treatment or recovery or with criminal records can take to prevent job discrimination.
- Employment Discrimination and What to Do About it (in NY) (2002) - Explains state and federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination against people with criminal records, histories of alcohol and drug problems, and HIV/AIDS.
- Welfare As We Know It Now: What New York’s New Welfare Laws Mean for People with Criminal Records, Substance Abuse Histories and HIV/AIDS (2000) - Describes how New York State and federal welfare laws affect individuals with criminal records, alcohol and drug histories, and HIV/AIDS.
- Trained drug courts around New York State on the complex confidentiality issues relating to the referral of defendants into treatment.
- Helped alcohol and drug treatment and prevention providers understand how to reconcile the requirements governing them under both 42 C.F.R. Part 2 and the new Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations.
- Provided numerous trainings to school districts throughout New York State to help them understand how the confidentiality regulations pertain to prevention programs and minors.
- Helped employers around the state understand the requirements of the Drug Free Workplace Act.
- Provided trainings and technical assistance to individuals, service providers and advocates to help them understand how the changes made to the federal and state welfare laws affect persons with past or current drug or alcohol problems, histories of involvement in the criminal justice system, and persons with HIV/AIDS.
- Helped treatment providers and consumers affected by the implementation of managed care policies and procedures understand New York’s Medicaid Managed Care and Consumer Protection laws.
- Provided training and technical assistance on child welfare issues for families affected by alcohol and drug use and addiction, including making presentations in a variety of settings on how the time lines in the Adoption and Safe Family Act (ASFA) legislation affect drug and alcohol treatment programs.