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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 11, 2018                                       

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Jeff Van Ness, (202) 204-7515

WASHINGTON – Margaret A. Murray, CEO of the Association of Community Affiliated Plans (ACAP), today issued the following statement on opioid hearings held by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and House Energy & Commerce Committees, both of whom are considering wide-ranging legislation aimed at addressing the nation’s opioid crisis.

“ACAP applauds Congress’ attention to this important issue. We and our member Safety Net Health Plans stand prepared to help Congress to maximize the potential in Medicare and Medicaid to address this crisis. Many of our plans have developed insights and strategies to address the crisis that ACAP has endeavored to share widely, and we look forward to doing so further.

“We most strongly support the language under consideration of the House Energy & Commerce Committee that would require states to measure and report on certain adult health quality measures, especially those that pertain to opioid care. From the health plan perspective, this one of the most important things that Congress can do to combat the opioid crisis. This will provide a system-wide picture of how well Medicaid is delivering care to people struggling with substance use disorder. ACAP has long supported such an approach, a version of which was featured in the recently-passed Bipartisan Budget Act.

“There is also an opportunity to for Congress to improve care for people who live with substance abuse issues: updating patient privacy measures pertaining to substance abuse at 42 CFR Part 2, which have the perverse impact of impeding efforts to coordinate care by segregating records pertaining to substance use disorder from the rest of the health care system. In an era of increased teamwork in medical care, this leads to worse health outcomes—and, ironically, may exacerbate the very stigma for people receiving treatment for SUD that the regulations intended to prevent.

“Congress should take a second look and consider bringing these regulations into line with HIPAA, which contains powerful patient privacy protections.”

“We’re ready to share our experiences with Congress and to assist in the effort to combat opioid use disorder.”

Note: ACAP’s comments for both hearings can be found here:
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
House Energy & Commerce Committee

About ACAP
ACAP represents 61 Safety Net Health Plans, which provide health coverage to more than 21 million people in 29 states. Safety Net Health Plans serve their members through Medicaid, Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Marketplace and other health programs. For more information, visit www.communityplans.net.

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