SUD Crisis

Congress should make mobile crisis services mandatory under Medicaid. At a minimum, these services should be made a permanent state option available to states eligible for enhanced federal Medicaid match funding.[1]

Congress should pass the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act (Momnibus 2.0) package, which includes 13 bills to address alarming disparities in Black maternal health.

Congress should require Medicare and state Medicaid programs to reimburse for Contingency Management.

The President should elevate the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), which sits within the White House and oversees U.S. drug and substance use policy across 19 federal departments and agencies, to a cabinet-level position. Congress should also amend ONDCP’s authorizing statute to integrate mental health into the structure of the Office.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) should issue guidance to hospitals on their obligations under the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA) to stabilize and treat individuals with a substance use disorder (SUD), and Congress should provide financial resources to incentivize hospitals to hire appropriate staff for their emergency departments[1]

Congress should require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish a single global payment under the Physician Fee Schedule for mobile crisis response team services for Medicare beneficiaries experiencing a mental health or substance use disorder (MH/SUD) crisis. A bipartisan group of Senate Finance Committee members has supported this important step.[1]