Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall joined a bipartisan coalition of 39 other state attorneys general to petition Congress to pass legislation that would make drug addiction treatment more affordable and accessible to Americans who most need it. The bill sponsored by the coalition, “The Road to Recovery Act,” will eliminate a decades-old Medicaid rule restricting residential treatment options.
In a press release, Marshall acknowledged that mental health care is an essential component in the fight against the nation’s looming opioid epidemic.
“We are attacking this crisis on many fronts, through tough law enforcement against drug dealers, and through stronger laws and regulations to combat the proliferation of opioids. It is vital that we also make it easier to help those who have a problem and are trying to overcome it. This federal legislation will remove a roadblock that limited treatment options, and will facilitate better treatment for drug addiction.”
In a letter sent to Congressional leaders, the attorneys general stated, “[W]e cannot arrest our way out of this problem, because it is not just a public safety challenge – it is a public health challenge as well.”
According to a recent study cited by Attorney General Marshall, as many as 65,000 American lives were cut short due to opioids in 2016. That includes 736 Alabamians who died from drug overdoses last year. Marshall and others hope that “The Road to Recovery Act” will make treatment more accessible to all Americans.
The bill seeks to address the “Institution for Mental Diseases” exclusion in the original 1965 Medicaid legislation. This exclusion prevents the funding of large, residential mental health facilities, which at that time were very inhumane institutions. However, this exclusion is now preventing Medicaid funding of one of the most effective ways to treat drug addiction.
Marshall and the other attorneys general are confident that this bill will open new avenues for addiction treatment while maintaining appropriate restrictions on mental health institutions.
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