Addiction Is Part of Conversation at National Council

One of the most insightful professional conferences in the behavioral health field is the annual meeting of the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare, which officially kicked off this morning in San Diego. I invite you to stay attuned to the National Council’s activities all week by reading the daily updates on www.behavioral.net by my colleagues Dennis Grantham and Nick Zubko of Behavioral Healthcare magazine.

Addiction topics certainly enter into many of the discussions at the National Council meeting. In her opening remarks this morning, association president and CEO Linda Rosenberg put in a word for further integration of services, suggesting that the field should explore the “collaboration, co-location, and even the integration of mental health and substance abuse,” as Nick Zubko reported.

Rosenberg also made a strong plea in her talk for opposing plans being discussed in Washington to restructure Medicaid and thereby bring about significant reductions in spending. “We cannot let that happen,” she told conference attendees.

Go to the “Conference Coverage” section of the Behavioral Healthcare website (www.behavioral.net) for up-to-the-minute reports on this most important meeting for community-based mental health and addiction treatment organizations.