We are excited to share that today, your participation in addressing the addiction crisis in the United States has resulted in significant change. Congress just passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 and several important policies will be enacted.
You can read more about the changes on our website, but here’s a quick overview of what your support has made possible:
- Health care providers who prescribe controlled substances are now required to undergo training in substance use disorders
- A restrictive federal law that required providers to obtain special permission to prescribe the FDA-approved medication buprenorphine for opioid use disorder is now eliminated
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Enforcement of the Parity Act, which requires most health insurance plans to cover mental health and substance use disorder treatment the same way they cover treatment for other conditions, has been strengthened
The bill also includes other critical addiction-related provisions: reauthorization of behavioral health programs and youth mental health services; support for crisis response services and recovery housing; the removal of barriers and expanded access to treatment; and an increase in the availability of non-opioid pain medications.
Thank you so much for your donations, your responses to our action alerts, sharing your stories on social media and so much more. Our network of family advocates in all 50 states worked tirelessly to make our voices heard and let their members of Congress know they supported these important addiction-related priorities.
While we recognize that we still have a lot of work to do, the changes that are happening today could not have happened without you. Thank you for all the work that each of you do every day and happy holidays!
-Your Friends at Partnership to End Addiction
Help us continue to advocate for life-saving policy changes and provide evidence-backed support services directly to tens of thousands of families free of charge. We rely on our generous donors. All donations before the end of the year will be matched by several members of our Board of Directors.
