Directs the commissioner of health to establish an opioid addiction treatment and hospital diversion demonstration program.

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S7326-2011 Actions

• Jun 13, 2012: referred to health
• Jun 13, 2012: DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
• Jun 13, 2012: PASSED SENATE
• Jun 13, 2012: ORDERED TO THIRD READING CAL.1251
• Jun 13, 2012: COMMITTEE DISCHARGED AND COMMITTED TO RULES
• May 15, 2012: REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO FINANCE
• May 2, 2012: REFERRED TO HEALTH

S7326-2011 Meetings

Health: May 15, 2012, Rules: Jun 18, 2012

S7326-2011 Calendars

Floor Calendar: Jun 13, 2012

S7326-2011 Votes

S7326-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S7326

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing an opioid
addiction treatment and hospital diversion demonstration program

PURPOSE:
Directs the commissioner of health to establish an opioid treatment
and hospital diversion demonstration program

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 adds a new Public Health Law �331 0 to establish the Opioid
Treatment and Hospital Diversion Demonstration Program. Under the
program the commissioner is authorized to established up to six
demonstrations with, at minimum, one located in each of the following
locations; Western New York, Central New York, State Island,
Brooklyn, and Long Island.
Additionally, this section requires the commissioner to report on the
effectiveness of the demonstration program and recommendations
regarding the expansion of the program.

Section 2 provides the act take effect immediately.

JUSTIFICATION:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reported
that in one year, 27,000 Americans died of unintentional drug
overdoses - that is one death every 19 minutes. Further, the CDC
reported that for every unintentional overdose death related to
opioids, nine persons are admitted for substance abuse treatment and
35 individuals visit emergency departments.
According to a study in the journal Psychiatric Services, substance
abuse disorders are costing states millions of dollars in Medicaid
expenses. This study found that in six states, the Medicaid programs
spent over $200 million more on beneficiaries with substance abuse
disorders than those without.

Presumably, in an effort to cut these costs, both the state and
national government have been supportive of the concept of making
detox an outpatient, rather than inpatient service.
Withdrawal from opioid drugs is generally not life threatening and can
be readily managed in less intensive and costly environments.
However, despite the support of more efficient, cost saving
alternatives, there is a shortage of community options for individuals
seeking assistance with opioid addiction. The lack of available
treatment facilities was raised several times at the recent
roundtables on the prescription drug abuse crisis held by the Senate
Standing Committee on Health and the Senate Standing Committee on
Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.

This demonstration program aims to address these issues by providing
alternative outpatient short term treatment, avoiding the unnecessary
emergency room costs, and studying the effectiveness of this
treatment model. The demonstration program established herein is
modeled after programs such as the Rose House Hospital Diversion
Program, located in Poughkeepsie, Voices of the Health, Inc., serving


Washington and Warren County, and the Essex County Crisis Alternatives
Program - which are all deemed to be successful programs providing
mental health respite services. While there will be costs to the
state associated with the creation of this demonstration, such costs
are expected to be offset by Medicaid savings resulting from the
decrease in emergency room services.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The costs of the program are expected to be offset by Medicaid savings.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

S7326-2011 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    7326

                              I N  SENATE

                                 May 2, 2012
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen.  HANNON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Health

  AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation  to  establishing  an
    opioid   addiction  treatment  and  hospital  diversion  demonstration
    program

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1.  The  public health law is amended by adding a new section
  3309-b to read as follows:

    S 3309-B. OPIOID ADDICTION TREATMENT  AND  HOSPITAL  DIVERSION  DEMON-
  STRATION  PROGRAM.  1. THE COMMISSIONER, IN CONSULTATION WITH THE OFFICE
  OF ALCOHOLISM AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE SERVICES, SHALL,  WITHIN  THE  AMOUNTS
  APPROPRIATED  THEREFOR,  ESTABLISH  AN  OPIOID  ADDICTION  TREATMENT AND
  HOSPITAL DIVERSION DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. THIS PROGRAM SHALL  PROVIDE  A
  NEW  MODEL  OF  DETOXIFICATION AND TRANSITIONAL SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS
  SEEKING TO RECOVER FROM OPIOID ADDICTION, THEREBY REDUCING  RELIANCE  ON
  EMERGENCY  ROOM SERVICES. THE PROGRAM SHALL PROVIDE FOR THE TREATMENT OF
  PRESCRIPTION PAIN MEDICATION ADDICTION ON AN OUTPATIENT  OR  NON-MEDICAL
  RESIDENTIAL  SHORT-TERM  STAY BASIS. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL ESTABLISH UP
  TO SIX DEMONSTRATIONS THROUGHOUT THE STATE,  AND  AT  MINIMUM  A  DEMON-
  STRATION  SHALL  BE  ESTABLISHED IN EACH OF THE FOLLOWING AREAS: WESTERN
  NEW YORK, CENTRAL NEW YORK, STATEN ISLAND, BROOKLYN AND LONG ISLAND.
    2. NOT LATER THAN TWO YEARS AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS  SECTION,
  THE  COMMISSIONER SHALL PROVIDE THE GOVERNOR, THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF
  THE SENATE, THE SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY, THE CHAIR OF THE SENATE  STAND-
  ING  COMMITTEE  ON HEALTH AND THE CHAIR OF THE ASSEMBLY HEALTH COMMITTEE
  WITH A WRITTEN EVALUATION OF THE DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. SUCH  EVALUATION
  SHALL  ADDRESS  THE  OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS OF THIS TREATMENT MODEL AS IT
  RELATES TO PATIENTS, THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITY,  HEALTH  CARE  PROVIDERS
  AND  HEALTH  CARE  PAYORS, AND SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, THE
  EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROGRAM IN PROVIDING ACCESS TO SERVICES, THE IMPACT
  OF THESE SERVICES, THE ASSOCIATED COSTS SAVINGS, AND WHETHER THE  EXPAN-
  SION OF THIS OR SIMILAR MODELS ARE RECOMMENDED.
    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD15691-01-2