N.Y. MHY Law § 19.07 — New York Code / Act MHY / Title D / Article 19 / Section 19.07
Office of alcoholism and substance abuse services; scope of responsibilities
Status: in_force

§ 19.07 Office of alcoholism and substance abuse services; scope of\n          responsibilities.\n  (a) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services is charged\nwith the responsibility for assuring the development of comprehensive\nplans, programs, and services in the areas of research, prevention,\ncare, treatment, rehabilitation, including relapse prevention and\nrecovery maintenance, education, and training of persons who abuse or\nare dependent on alcohol and/or substances and their families. Such\nplans, programs, and services shall be developed with the cooperation of\nthe office, the other offices of the department where appropriate, local\ngovernments, consumers and community organizations and entities. The\noffice shall provide appropriate facilities and shall encourage the\nprovision of facilities by local government and community organizations\nand entities. The office is also responsible for developing plans,\nprograms and services related to compulsive gambling education,\nprevention and treatment consistent with section 41.57 of this chapter.\n  (b) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services shall advise\nand assist the governor in improving services and developing policies\ndesigned to meet the needs of persons who suffer from an addictive\ndisorder and their families, and to encourage their rehabilitation,\nmaintenance of recovery, and functioning in society.\n  (c) The office of addiction services and supports shall have the\nresponsibility for seeing that persons who suffer from a substance use\ndisorder and their families are provided with addiction services, care\nand treatment, and that such services, care, treatment and\nrehabilitation is of high quality and effectiveness, and that the\npersonal and civil rights of persons seeking and receiving addiction\nservices, care, treatment and rehabilitation are adequately protected,\nincluding that patients have the right to access services based on their\ngender identity, gender expression and/or sexual orientation. For the\npurposes of this subdivision, gender identity or gender expression means\na person's actual or perceived gender related identity, appearance,\nbehavior, expression, or other gender related characteristic regardless\nof the sex assigned to that person at birth.\n  (d) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services shall foster\nprograms for the training and development of persons capable of\nproviding the foregoing services, including but not limited to a process\nof issuing, either directly or through contract, credentials for\nalcoholism and substance abuse counselors or gambling addiction\ncounselors in accordance with the following:\n  (1) The office shall establish minimum qualifications for counselors\nin all phases of delivery of services to persons and their families who\nare suffering from alcohol and/or substance abuse and/or chemical\ndependence and/or compulsive gambling that shall include, but not be\nlimited to, completion of approved courses of study or equivalent\non-the-job experience in alcoholism and substance abuse counseling\nand/or counseling of compulsive gambling. Such approved courses of study\nor equivalent on-the-job experience shall include: providing\ntrauma-informed, patient-centered care; referring individuals to\nappropriate treatments for co-occurring disorders; and sensitivity\ntraining. Such courses shall be updated as needed to reflect evolving\nbest practices in harm reduction, treatment and long-term recovery. For\nthe purposes of this paragraph, sensitivity training shall mean a form\nof training with the goal of making people more aware of their own\nprejudices and more sensitive to others.\n  (i) The office shall establish procedures for issuing, directly or\nthrough contract, credentials to counselors who meet minimum\nqualifications, including the establishment of appropriate fees, and\nshall further establish procedures to suspend, revoke, or annul such\ncredentials for good cause. Such procedures shall be promulgated by the\ncommissioner by rule or regulation.\n  (ii) The commissioner shall establish a credentialing board which\nshall provide advice concerning the credentialing process.\n  (2) The establishment, with the advice of the advisory council on\nalcoholism and substance abuse services, of minimum qualifications for\ncounselors in all phases of delivery of services to those suffering from\nalcoholism, substance and/or chemical abuse and/or dependence and/or\ncompulsive gambling and their families that shall include, but not be\nlimited to, completion of approved courses of study or equivalent\non-the-job experience in counseling for alcoholism, substance and/or\nchemical abuse and/or dependence and/or compulsive gambling, and issue\ncredentials to counselors who meet minimum qualifications and suspend,\nrevoke, or annul such credentials for good cause in accordance with\nprocedures promulgated by the commissioner by rule or regulation.\n  (3) For the purpose of this title, the term "credentialed alcoholism\nand substance abuse counselor" or "C.A.S.A.C." means an official\ndesignation identifying an individual as one who holds a currently\nregistered and valid credential issued by the office of alcoholism and\nsubstance abuse services pursuant to this section which documents an\nindividual's qualifications to provide alcoholism and substance abuse\ncounseling. The term "gambling addiction counselor" means an official\ndesignation identifying an individual as one who holds a currently\nregistered and valid credential issued by the office of alcoholism and\nsubstance abuse services pursuant to this section which documents an\nindividual's qualifications to provide compulsive gambling counseling.\n  (i) No person shall use the title credentialed alcoholism and\nsubstance abuse counselor or "C.A.S.A.C." or gambling addiction\ncounselor unless authorized pursuant to this title.\n  (ii) Failure to comply with the requirements of this section shall\nconstitute a violation as defined in the penal law.\n  (4) All persons holding previously issued and valid alcoholism or\nsubstance abuse counselor credentials on the effective date of\namendments to this section shall be deemed C.A.S.A.C. designated.\n  (e) Consistent with the requirements of subdivision (b) of section\n5.05 of this chapter, the office shall carry out the provisions of\narticle thirty-two of this chapter as such article pertains to\nregulation and quality control of chemical dependence services,\nincluding but not limited to the establishment of standards for\ndetermining the necessity and appropriateness of care and services\nprovided by chemical dependence providers of services. In implementing\nthis subdivision, the commissioner, in consultation with the\ncommissioner of health, shall adopt standards including necessary rules\nand regulations including but not limited to those for determining the\nnecessity or appropriate level of admission, controlling the length of\nstay and the provision of services, and establishing the methods and\nprocedures for making such determination.\n  (f) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services shall\ndevelop a list of all agencies throughout the state which are currently\ncertified by the office and are capable of and available to provide\nevaluations in accordance with section sixty-five-b of the alcoholic\nbeverage control law so as to determine need for treatment pursuant to\nsuch section and to assure the availability of such evaluation services\nby a certified agency within a reasonable distance of every court of a\nlocal jurisdiction in the state. Such list shall be updated on a regular\nbasis and shall be made available to every supreme court law library in\nthis state, or, if no supreme court law library is available in a\ncertain county, to the county court library of such county.\n  (g) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services shall\ndevelop and maintain a list of the names and locations of all licensed\nagencies and alcohol and substance abuse professionals, as defined in\nparagraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision one of section eleven hundred\nninety-eight-a of the vehicle and traffic law, throughout the state\nwhich are capable of and available to provide an assessment of, and\ntreatment for, alcohol and substance abuse and dependency. Such list\nshall be provided to the chief administrator of the office of court\nadministration and the commissioner of motor vehicles. Persons who may\nbe aggrieved by an agency decision regarding inclusion on the list may\nrequest an administrative appeal in accordance with rules and\nregulations of the office.\n  (h) The office of addiction services and supports shall monitor\nprograms providing care and treatment to incarcerated individuals in\ncorrectional facilities operated by the department of corrections and\ncommunity supervision who have a history of alcohol or substance use\ndisorder or dependence. The office shall also develop guidelines for the\noperation of alcohol and substance use disorder treatment programs in\nsuch correctional facilities, based on best practices, and tailored to\nthe nature of the individual's substance use, history of past treatment,\nand history of mental illness or trauma, which may include harm\nreduction strategies, in order to ensure that such programs sufficiently\nmeet the needs of incarcerated individuals with a history of alcohol or\nsubstance use disorder or dependence and promote the successful\ntransition to treatment in the community upon release. No later than the\nfirst day of December of each year, the office shall submit a report\nregarding: (1) the adequacy and effectiveness of alcohol and substance\nuse disorder treatment programs operated by the department of\ncorrections and community supervision; (2) the total number of\nincarcerated individuals in correctional facilities that have been\nscreened for, and determined to have, a substance use disorder; (3)\ninformation regarding which substances incarcerated individuals are most\ndependent upon and the available treatment for such individuals within\neach correctional facility; (4) the total number of individuals who\nparticipate in each of the treatment programs operated by the department\nof corrections and community supervision; and (5) the total number of\nindividuals who participated in a substance use disorder treatment\nprogram but failed to complete such program, as well as whether such\nfailure to complete the program was a result of disciplinary action\ntaken by the facility against the individual for instances unrelated to\ntheir participation in the treatment program. The department of\ncorrections and community supervision shall provide the office with\ninformation needed to complete this report. Such report shall be sent to\nthe governor, the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the\nassembly, the chairman of the senate committee on crime victims, crime\nand correction, and the chairman of the assembly committee on\ncorrection.\n  (i) The office of addiction services and supports shall periodically,\nin consultation with the state commissioner of veterans' services: (1)\nreview the programs operated by the office to ensure that the needs of\nthe state's veterans who served in the U.S. armed forces and who are\nrecovering from alcohol and/or substance abuse are being met and to\ndevelop improvements to programs to meet such needs; and (2) in\ncollaboration with the state commissioner of veterans' services and the\ncommissioner of the office of mental health, review and make\nrecommendations to improve programs that provide treatment,\nrehabilitation, relapse prevention, and recovery services to veterans\nwho have served in a combat theatre or combat zone of operations and\nhave a co-occurring mental health and alcoholism or substance abuse\ndisorder.\n  (j) The office, in consultation with the state education department,\nshall identify or develop materials on problem gambling among school-age\nyouth which may be used by school districts and boards of cooperative\neducational services, at their option, to educate students on the\ndangers and consequences of problem gambling as they deem appropriate.\nSuch materials shall be available on the internet website of the state\neducation department. The internet website of the office shall provide a\nhyperlink to the internet page of the state education department that\ndisplays such materials.\n  (k) Heroin and opioid addiction awareness and education program. The\ncommissioner, in cooperation with the commissioner of the department of\nhealth, shall develop and conduct a public awareness and educational\ncampaign on heroin and opioid addiction. The campaign shall utilize\npublic forums, social media and mass media, including, but not limited\nto, internet, radio, and print advertising such as billboards and\nposters and shall also include posting of materials and information on\nthe office website. The campaign shall be tailored to educate youth,\nparents, healthcare professionals and the general public regarding: (1)\nthe risks associated with the abuse and misuse of heroin and opioids;\n(2) how to recognize the signs of addiction; and (3) the resources\navailable for those needing assistance with heroin or opioid addiction.\nThe campaign shall further be designed to enhance awareness of the\nopioid overdose prevention program authorized pursuant to section\nthirty-three hundred nine of the public health law and the "Good\nSamaritan law" established pursuant to sections 220.03 and 220.78 of the\npenal law and section 390.40 of the criminal procedure law, and to\nreduce the stigma associated with addiction.\n  (l) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, in\nconsultation with the state education department, shall develop or\nutilize existing educational materials to be provided to school\ndistricts and boards of cooperative educational services for use in\naddition to or in conjunction with any drug and alcohol related\ncurriculum regarding the misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco,\nprescription medication and other drugs with an increased focus on\nsubstances that are most prevalent among school aged youth as such term\nis defined in section eight hundred four of the education law. Such\nmaterials shall be age appropriate for school age children, and to the\nextent practicable, shall include information or resources for parents\nto identify the warning signs and address the risks of substance abuse.\n  (m) (1) The office shall report on the status and outcomes of\ninitiatives created in response to the heroin and opioid epidemic to the\ntemporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the\nchairs of the assembly and senate committees on alcoholism and drug\nabuse, the chair of the assembly ways and means committee and the chair\nof the senate finance committee.\n  (2) Such reports shall include, to the extent practicable and\napplicable, information on:\n  (i) The number of individuals enrolled in the initiative in the\npreceding quarter;\n  (ii) The number of individuals who completed the treatment program in\nthe preceding quarter;\n  (iii) The number of individuals discharged from the treatment program\nin the preceding quarter;\n  (iv) The age and sex of the individuals served;\n  (v) Relevant regional data about the individuals;\n  (vi) The populations served; and\n  (vii) The outcomes and effectiveness of each initiative surveyed.\n  (3) Such initiatives shall include opioid treatment programs, crisis\ndetoxification programs, 24/7 open access centers, adolescent club\nhouses, family navigator programs, peer engagement specialists, recovery\ncommunity and outreach centers, regional addiction resource centers and\nthe state implementation of the federal opioid state targeted response\ninitiatives.\n  (4) Such information shall be provided quarterly, beginning no later\nthan July first, two thousand nineteen.\n  * (n) The office in consultation with the office of mental health, the\ndepartment of health, the division of housing and community renewal and\nany other agency that may oversee an appropriate program or service\nshall monitor and ensure funds appropriated pursuant to section\nninety-nine-nn of the state finance law are expended for services and\nprograms in accordance with such section.\n  * NB There are 2 sb (n)'s\n  * (n) The office of addiction services and supports, in consultation\nwith the commissioner of health, shall provide and publish, in\nelectronic or other format, training materials for health care\nproviders, as defined by subdivision six of section two hundred\nthirty-eight of the public health law, and qualified health\nprofessionals, recognized by the office to enable the implementation of\nthe screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment program\n(SBIRT). Such training materials shall include any and all materials\nnecessary to inform health care providers and qualified health\nprofessionals of the method for administering the SBIRT program to a\npatient in the care of health care providers or qualified health\nprofessionals. Such training materials shall be made available to health\ncare providers and qualified health professionals through the official\nwebsites of the office and the department of health and by any other\nmeans deemed appropriate by the commissioner.\n  * NB There are 2 sb (n)'s\n