Addiction & Mental Health

Opiate addiction and its effects on our community and within our families is a major public health issue in our state.
Every year, we lose hundreds of people as a result of addiction, whether by opiates, alcohol, or other addictive
substances. This is truly a battle and like so many in our community, this issue is personal to me. I have shepherded a
number of people through the treatment process, visiting many facilities that have some role to play in the addiction
treatment continuum and reviewing their practices, looking for the strengths and weaknesses in our system. This includes meetings with former judges of our drug court and attending mental health court hearings.

I have also been the keynote speaker at graduation ceremonies for the Peer Services certification program offered by DHSS/DSAMH and at the Limen House. Along with boots-on-the-ground involvement in our system, my legislative agenda is weighted in this area.
I am proud to say that I was the Senate prime sponsor of legislation that created the **Overdose System of Care** to improve care, treatment, and survival of overdose patients in the State of Delaware. This Act allows the Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services to establish stabilization centers that can receive overdose patients from Emergency Medical Services and designate acute health care facilities, freestanding emergency departments, and hospitals that meet established standards.

In order to help fund treatment services, I worked for two years to sponsor and pass one of the first **opiate impact fees** in the country that holds pharmaceutical manufacturers responsible for paying a fee for every opiate pill distributed in our state. That fund brings in about $2 million/yearly.

But so much about treating addiction depends upon the ability to access treatment and prevent addiction in the first place.

In 2020, I received the Legislative Champion award from the national group, Mental Health America, for being “a champion for access to treatment and support for mental health and substance use disorders.”

Here are just a few of the bills that I have sponsored which are now law:

Removed pre-authorization requirements for residential treatment. In an effort to reduce overdose deaths relating to the growing epidemic of opioid addiction, this Act requires carriers to provide coverage for medically necessary inpatient treatment of alcohol and drug dependencies and prohibits carriers from imposing precertification, prior authorization, pre-admission screening, or referral requirements for the diagnosis and treatment, including in-patient treatment, of drug and alcohol dependencies.
Alternative Therapies. This Act encouraged prescribers and patients to use proven non-opioid methods of treating back pain by prohibiting numerical limits on physical therapy and chiropractic care, which might deter prescribers or patients from using those treatments rather than opioids. A subsequent bill in 2022 made it clear that chiropractic supportive care is eligible for insurance coverage.
Pharmacist immunity for the distribution of Naloxone. Under this Act, a pharmacist who dispenses narloxone under an established set of circumstances is not subject to disciplinary or other adverse action under any professional licensing statute or criminal liability, or liable for damages related to injuries or death sustained in connection with administering the drug, unless it is established that the pharmacist caused the injuries or death willfully, wantonly, or by gross negligence.
Protection from denial of coverage. The denial by private and public health benefit administrators of adequate coverage for substance abuse treatment has been identified as a major source of failed treatment efforts by persons addicted to controlled substances. This Act seeks to ensure that persons with private and public insurance coverage have the ability to insist that they receive the substance abuse coverage to which they are entitled by, among other things, allowing the Department of Justice to provide legal assistance where appropriate.
Established the Behavioral Health Consortium that will provide oversight and coordination of the State’s private and public bodies to address behavioral health issues in Delaware.
Established the Addiction Action Committee as a means to establish a comprehensive, coordinated strategy to address addiction in Delaware.
Law Enforcement/DSAMH information sharing. This Act allows law-enforcement officers to share an individual's identifying information with the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health ("DSAMH") if the officer suspects the individual is suffering from an overdose or a mental health crisis, allowing DSAMH to connect the individual with behavioral health treatment services.
Greater coverage for MAT. This Act adds coverage for Medication Assisted Treatment ("MAT") for drug and alcohol dependencies to the mental health parity laws for health insurance.
Extending Good Samaritan law to cover laypersons who administer Naloxone.

Opiate addiction and its effects on our community and within our families is a major public health issue in our state.

Every year, we lose hundreds of people as a result of addiction, whether by opiates, alcohol, or other addictive

substances. This is truly a battle and like so many in our community, this issue is personal to me. I have shepherded a

number of people through the treatment process, visiting many facilities that have some role to play in the addiction

treatment continuum and reviewing their practices, looking for the strengths and weaknesses in our system. This includes meetings with former judges of our drug court and attending mental health court hearings.

I have also been the keynote speaker at graduation ceremonies for the Peer Services certification program offered by DHSS/DSAMH and at the Limen House. Along with boots-on-the-ground involvement in our system, my legislative agenda is weighted in this area.

In order to help fund treatment services, I worked for two years to sponsor and pass one of the first opiate impact fees in the country that holds pharmaceutical manufacturers responsible for paying a fee for every opiate pill distributed in our state. That fund brings in about $2 million/yearly.

But so much about treating addiction depends upon the ability to access treatment and prevent addiction in the first place.

In 2020, I received the Legislative Champion award from the national group, Mental Health America, for being “a champion for access to treatment and support for mental health and substance use disorders.”

Here are just a few of the bills that I have sponsored which are now law:

Established the Behavioral Health Consortium that will provide oversight and coordination of the State’s private and public bodies to address behavioral health issues in Delaware.

Established the Addiction Action Committee as a means to establish a comprehensive, coordinated strategy to address addiction in Delaware.

Greater coverage for MAT. This Act adds coverage for Medication Assisted Treatment ("MAT") for drug and alcohol dependencies to the mental health parity laws for health insurance.

Extending Good Samaritan law to cover laypersons who administer Naloxone.