Federal funding is hitting new lows in the realm of addiction therapy, as was noted at the America Society of Addiction Medicine Medical-Scientific Conference that was held April 14-17th. While the outlook for government funding for addiction therapy purposes appears to be bleak, the federal government is showing enthusiasm for some developments in the field in which doctors will be heavily involved.
Recent and expected changes that are set to occur for addiction therapy initiatives due to the federal reform may have catastrophic effects, not allowing for any new plan developments or action because of a lack of federal funding.
Because of these changes, the national Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment Initiative (SBIRT) is receiving a large amount of focus. This effort is expected to attack many largely unaddressed substance abuse issues in the population. The goal is to now mainstream the efforts of the SBIRT initiative across the majority of primary care practices. However, the problem now lies in the fact that most primary care practices and physicians are not adequately trained in the addiction sciences, leaving a large gap of undiagnosed and unrecognized cases of substance abuse.
The solution to this problem is to ultimately encourage physicians to become certified as addiction therapy specialists, along with their medical accreditations. This would provide a higher level of support for primary care practices, as these accredited physicians would be able to diagnose, as well as refer to treatment, those individuals in need of addiction therapy services.
Dr. Elin Ritchie of Vista Taos Addiction Center, located in Vista Taos, New Mexico, recently earned her certification from the American Board of Addiction Medicine. This accomplishment adds another dimension of superior addiction therapy care in addition to the services already available from Vista Taos Addiction Center.
If you or a loved one is experiencing the symptoms of addiction, do not hesitate to contact a counselor at Vista Taos Addiction Center to discuss the multitude of options available to addiction therapy patients.
