Statement by Paul Macielak, president and CEO
“The heroin and opioid legislative package announced by the Governor and legislative leaders today offers a number of positive steps in this multi-faceted effort to address the abuse epidemic in New York. However, it falls short in several key areas.
“Health plans support comprehensive treatment for individuals dealing with addiction, including use of medication assisted treatment (MAT) and inpatient rehab. The language of the bills relating to treatment, however, is not truly comprehensive and will result in a hodgepodge of treatment services with significant gaps and inconsistencies.
“Specifically, while health plans cover MAT, new MAT capacity is not provided and the majority of inpatient rehabilitation programs do not permit MAT, do not offer it and are philosophically opposed to its use in treatment. The bills also curtail plan oversight of treatment without designating responsibility to either providers or government. No one is charged with making certain the full range of treatment services are available or provided.
“This package seeks to build on the efforts started by the legislation adopted in 2014 that also focused on curbing opioid and heroin abuse. Yet, the reality is more action will likely be necessary before we can declare victory in this war. Health plans remain committed to working with lawmakers and our peers across the health care community to build on these efforts with a common goal of getting at the root of this epidemic.”