S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
6319--A
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
April 21, 2021
___________
Introduced by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Alcoholism and Substance
Abuse -- recommitted to the Committee on Alcoholism and Substance
Abuse in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to setting standards
for addiction professionals
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 19.07 of the mental hygiene law, as added by chap-
ter 223 of the laws of 1992, subdivisions (a) and (g) as amended by
chapter 271 of the laws of 2010, subdivisions (b) and (c) as amended by
chapter 281 of the laws of 2019, subdivision (d) as amended by section 5
of part I of chapter 58 of the laws of 2005 and the opening paragraph of
paragraph 1 of subdivision (d) as amended by chapter 449 of the laws of
2021, subdivision (e) as amended by chapter 558 of the laws of 1999,
subdivision (f) as added by chapter 383 of the laws of 1998, subdivision
(h) as separately amended by chapters 322 and 494 of the laws of 2021,
subdivision (i) as amended by section 31-a of part AA of chapter 56 of
the laws of 2019, subdivision (j) as amended by chapter 146 of the laws
of 2014, subdivision (k) as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 2014,
subdivision (l) as added by chapter 323 of the laws of 2018, subdivision
(m) as added by chapter 493 of the laws of 2019 and subdivision (n) as
added by chapter 190 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
§ 19.07 Office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS; scope of responsibilities.
(a) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS is charged with the responsibility for assuring
the development of comprehensive plans, programs, and services in the
areas of research, prevention, care, treatment, rehabilitation, includ-
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10782-02-2
S. 6319--A 2
ing relapse prevention and recovery maintenance, education, and training
of persons who [abuse or are dependent on alcohol and/or substances]
HAVE OR ARE AT RISK OF AN ADDICTIVE DISORDER and their families. THE
TERM ADDICTIVE DISORDER SHALL INCLUDE COMPULSIVE GAMBLING EDUCATION,
PREVENTION AND TREATMENT CONSISTENT WITH SECTION 41.57 OF THIS CHAPTER.
Such plans, programs, and services shall be developed with the cooper-
ation of the office, the other offices of the department where appropri-
ate, local governments, consumers and community organizations and enti-
ties. The office shall provide appropriate facilities and shall
encourage the provision of facilities by local government and community
organizations and entities. [The office is also responsible for develop-
ing plans, programs and services related to compulsive gambling educa-
tion, prevention and treatment consistent with section 41.57 of this
chapter.]
(b) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS shall advise and assist the governor in improving
services and developing policies designed to meet the needs of persons
who suffer from OR ARE AT RISK OF an addictive disorder and their fami-
lies, and to encourage their rehabilitation, maintenance of recovery,
and functioning in society.
(c) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS shall have the responsibility for seeing that
persons who suffer from OR ARE AT RISK OF an addictive disorder and
their families are provided with addiction services, care and treatment,
and that such services, care, treatment and rehabilitation is of high
quality and effectiveness, and that the personal and civil rights of
persons seeking and receiving addiction services, care, treatment and
rehabilitation are adequately protected.
(d) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS shall foster programs for the training and devel-
opment of persons capable of providing the foregoing services, including
but not limited to a process of issuing, either directly or through
contract, LICENSES, credentials, CERTIFICATES OR AUTHORIZATIONS for
[alcoholism and substance abuse counselors or gambling] addiction [coun-
selors] PROFESSIONALS in accordance with the following:
(1) The office shall establish minimum qualifications [for counselors]
AND A DEFINITION OF THE PRACTICE OF THE PROFESSION OF AN ADDICTION
PROFESSIONAL in all phases of delivery of services to persons and their
families who are suffering from [alcohol and/or substance abuse and/or
chemical dependence and/or compulsive gambling that shall include] OR
ARE AT RISK OF AN ADDICTIVE DISORDER INCLUDING, but not be limited to,
completion of approved courses of study or equivalent on-the-job experi-
ence in [alcoholism and substance abuse counseling and/or counseling of
compulsive gambling] ADDICTION DISORDER SERVICES. Such approved courses
of study or equivalent on-the-job experience shall include: providing
trauma-informed, patient-centered care; referring individuals to appro-
priate treatments for co-occurring disorders; and sensitivity training.
Such courses shall be updated as needed to reflect evolving best prac-
tices in harm reduction, treatment and long-term recovery. For the
purposes of this paragraph, sensitivity training shall mean a form of
training with the goal of making people more aware of their own preju-
dices and more sensitive to others.
(i) The office shall establish procedures for issuing, directly or
through contract, LICENSES, credentials, CERTIFICATES OR AUTHORIZATIONS
to [counselors] ADDICTION PROFESSIONALS who meet minimum qualifications,
including the establishment of appropriate fees, and shall further
S. 6319--A 3
establish procedures to suspend, revoke, or annul such LICENSES, creden-
tials, CERTIFICATES OR AUTHORIZATIONS for good cause. Such procedures
shall be promulgated by the commissioner by rule or regulation.
(ii) The commissioner shall establish [a credentialing] AN ADDICTION
PROFESSIONALS board which shall provide advice concerning the LICENSING,
credentialing, CERTIFICATION OR AUTHORIZATION process.
(III) THE COMMISSIONER SHALL ESTABLISH FEES FOR THE EDUCATION, TRAIN-
ING, LICENSING, CREDENTIALING, CERTIFICATION OR AUTHORIZATION OF
ADDICTION PROFESSIONALS.
(2) The establishment, with the advice of the advisory council on
alcoholism and substance abuse services, of minimum qualifications for
[counselors] ADDICTION PROFESSIONALS in all phases of delivery of
services to those suffering from [alcoholism, substance and/or chemical
abuse and/or dependence and/or compulsive gambling] OR AT RISK OF ADDIC-
TIVE DISORDERS and their families that shall include, but not be limited
to, completion of approved courses of study or equivalent on-the-job
experience in [counseling for alcoholism, substance and/or chemical
abuse and/or dependence] ADDICTION DISORDER SERVICES and/or [compulsive]
gambling DISORDER SERVICES, and ESTABLISH APPROPRIATE FEES, issue
LICENSES, credentials, CERTIFICATES OR AUTHORIZATIONS to [counselors]
ADDICTION PROFESSIONALS who meet minimum qualifications and suspend,
revoke, or annul such LICENSES, credentials, CERTIFICATES OR AUTHORI-
ZATIONS for good cause in accordance with procedures promulgated by the
commissioner by rule or regulation.
(3) For the purpose of this title, the term "ADDICTION PROFESSIONAL",
INCLUDING "credentialed alcoholism and substance abuse counselor" or
"C.A.S.A.C.", means an official designation identifying an individual as
one who holds a currently registered and valid LICENSE, credential,
CERTIFICATE OR AUTHORIZATION issued OR APPROVED by the office of [alco-
holism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION SERVICES AND SUPPORTS
pursuant to this section which documents an individual's qualifications
to provide [alcoholism and substance abuse counseling] ADDICTION DISOR-
DER SERVICES. The term "gambling addiction [counselor"] PROFESSIONAL"
means an official designation identifying an individual as one who holds
a currently registered and valid LICENSE, credential, CERTIFICATE OR
AUTHORIZATION issued by the office of [alcoholism and substance abuse
services] ADDICTION SERVICES AND SUPPORTS pursuant to this section which
documents an individual's qualifications to provide [compulsive] gambl-
ing [counseling] DISORDER SERVICES.
(i) No person shall use the title [credentialed alcoholism and
substance abuse counselor or "C.A.S.A.C." or gambling addiction counse-
lor] "ADDICTION PROFESSIONAL" OR THE TITLE GIVEN TO ANY LICENSES,
CREDENTIALS, CERTIFICATES OR AUTHORIZATIONS ISSUED BY THE OFFICE unless
authorized [pursuant to] BY THE COMMISSIONER IN ACCORDANCE WITH this
title.
(ii) Failure to comply with the requirements of this section shall
constitute a violation as defined in the penal law.
(4) All persons holding previously issued and valid alcoholism or
substance abuse counselor credentials ISSUED BY THE OFFICE OR AN ENTITY
DESIGNATED BY THE OFFICE, INCLUDING A CREDENTIALED ALCOHOLISM AND
SUBSTANCE ABUSE COUNSELOR, CERTIFIED PREVENTION SPECIALIST, CREDENTIALED
PREVENTION PROFESSIONAL, CREDENTIALED PROBLEM GAMBLING COUNSELOR, GAMBL-
ING SPECIALTY DESIGNATION, AND CERTIFIED RECOVERY PEER ADVOCATE, on the
effective date of amendments to this section shall be deemed [C.A.S.A.C.
designated] AN ADDICTION PROFESSIONAL CONSISTENT WITH THEIR EXPERIENCE
AND EDUCATION.
S. 6319--A 4
(e) Consistent with the requirements of subdivision (b) of section
5.05 of this chapter, the office shall carry out the provisions of arti-
cle thirty-two of this chapter as such article pertains to regulation
and quality control of [chemical dependence] ADDICTION DISORDER
services, including but not limited to the establishment of standards
for determining the necessity and appropriateness of care and services
provided by [chemical dependence] ADDICTION DISORDER providers of
services. In implementing this subdivision, the commissioner, in consul-
tation with the commissioner of health, shall adopt standards including
necessary rules and regulations including but not limited to those for
determining the necessity or appropriate level of admission, controlling
the length of stay and the provision of services, and establishing the
methods and procedures for making such determination.
(f) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS shall develop a list of all agencies throughout
the state which are currently certified by the office and are capable of
and available to provide evaluations in accordance with section sixty-
five-b of the alcoholic beverage control law so as to determine need for
treatment pursuant to such section and to assure the availability of
such evaluation services by a certified agency within a reasonable
distance of every court of a local jurisdiction in the state. Such list
shall be updated on a regular basis and shall be made available to every
supreme court law library in this state, or, if no supreme court law
library is available in a certain county, to the county court library of
such county. THE COMMISSIONER MAY ESTABLISH AN ANNUAL FEE FOR INCLUSION
ON SUCH LIST.
(g) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS shall develop and maintain a list of the names and
locations of all licensed agencies and [alcohol and substance abuse]
ADDICTION professionals, as defined in paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdi-
vision one of section eleven hundred ninety-eight-a of the vehicle and
traffic law, throughout the state which are capable of and available to
provide an assessment of, and treatment for, [alcohol and substance
abuse and dependency] ADDICTION DISORDERS. Such list shall be provided
to the chief administrator of the office of court administration and the
commissioner of motor vehicles. Persons who may be aggrieved by an agen-
cy decision regarding inclusion on the list may request an administra-
tive appeal in accordance with rules and regulations of the office. THE
COMMISSIONER MAY ESTABLISH AN ANNUAL FEE FOR INCLUSION ON SUCH LIST.
(h) The office of addiction services and supports shall monitor
programs providing care and treatment to incarcerated individuals in
correctional facilities operated by the department of corrections and
community supervision who have a history of [alcohol or substance use
disorder or dependence] AN ADDICTION DISORDER. The office shall also
develop guidelines for the operation of [alcohol and substance use
disorder treatment programs] ADDICTION DISORDER SERVICES in such correc-
tional facilities, based on best practices, and tailored to the nature
of the individual's substance use, history of past treatment, and histo-
ry of mental illness or trauma, which may include harm reduction strate-
gies, in order to ensure that such [programs] SERVICES sufficiently meet
the needs of incarcerated individuals with a history of [alcohol or
substance use disorder or dependence] AN ADDICTION DISORDER and promote
the successful transition to treatment in the community upon release. No
later than the first day of December of each year, the office shall
submit a report regarding: (1) the adequacy and effectiveness of [alco-
hol and substance use disorder treatment programs] ADDICTION DISORDER
S. 6319--A 5
SERVICES operated by the department of corrections and community super-
vision; (2) the total number of incarcerated individuals in correctional
facilities that have been screened for, and determined to have, [a
substance use] AN ADDICTION disorder; (3) information regarding which
substances incarcerated individuals are most dependent upon and the
available treatment for such individuals within each correctional facil-
ity; (4) the total number of individuals who participate in each of the
[treatment programs] ADDICTION DISORDER SERVICES operated by the depart-
ment of corrections and community supervision; and (5) the total number
of individuals who participated in [a substance use disorder treatment
program] ADDICTION DISORDER SERVICES but failed to complete such
[program] SERVICES, as well as whether such failure to complete [the
program] SUCH ADDICTION DISORDER SERVICES was a result of disciplinary
action taken by the facility against the individual for instances unre-
lated to their participation in [the treatment program] SUCH SERVICES.
The department of corrections and community supervision shall provide
the office with information needed to complete this report. Such report
shall be sent to the governor, the temporary president of the senate,
the speaker of the assembly, the chairman of the senate committee on
crime victims, crime and correction, and the chairman of the assembly
committee on correction.
(i) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS shall periodically, in consultation with the state
director of veterans' services: (1) review the programs operated by the
office to ensure that the needs of the state's veterans who served in
the U.S. armed forces and who are recovering from [alcohol and/or
substance abuse] AN ADDICTION DISORDER are being met and to develop
improvements to programs to meet such needs; and (2) in collaboration
with the state director of veterans' services and the commissioner of
the office of mental health, review and make recommendations to improve
programs that provide treatment, rehabilitation, relapse prevention, and
recovery services to veterans who have served in a combat theatre or
combat zone of operations and have a co-occurring mental health and
[alcoholism or substance abuse] ADDICTION disorder.
(j) The office, in consultation with the state education department,
shall identify or develop materials on problem gambling among school-age
youth which may be used by school districts and boards of cooperative
educational services, at their option, to educate students on the
dangers and consequences of problem gambling as they deem appropriate.
Such materials shall be available on the internet website of the state
education department. The internet website of the office shall provide a
hyperlink to the internet page of the state education department that
displays such materials.
(k) Heroin and opioid addiction awareness and education program. The
commissioner, in cooperation with the commissioner of the department of
health, shall develop and conduct a public awareness and educational
campaign on heroin and opioid addiction. The campaign shall utilize
public forums, social media and mass media, including, but not limited
to, internet, radio, and print advertising such as billboards and post-
ers and shall also include posting of materials and information on the
office website. The campaign shall be tailored to educate youth,
parents, healthcare professionals and the general public regarding: (1)
the risks associated with the abuse and misuse of heroin and opioids;
(2) how to recognize the signs of addiction; and (3) the resources
available for those needing assistance with heroin or opioid addiction.
The campaign shall further be designed to enhance awareness of the
S. 6319--A 6
opioid overdose prevention program authorized pursuant to section thir-
ty-three hundred nine of the public health law and the "Good Samaritan
law" established pursuant to sections 220.03 and 220.78 of the penal law
and section 390.40 of the criminal procedure law, and to reduce the
stigma associated with addiction.
(l) The office of [alcoholism and substance abuse services] ADDICTION
SERVICES AND SUPPORTS, in consultation with the state education depart-
ment, shall develop or utilize existing educational materials to be
provided to school districts and boards of cooperative educational
services for use in addition to or in conjunction with any drug and
alcohol related curriculum regarding the misuse and abuse of alcohol,
tobacco, prescription medication and other drugs with an increased focus
on substances that are most prevalent among school aged youth as such
term is defined in section eight hundred four of the education law. Such
materials shall be age appropriate for school age children, and to the
extent practicable, shall include information or resources for parents
to identify the warning signs and address the risks of substance [abuse]
MISUSE AND ADDICTION.
(m) (1) The office shall report on the status and outcomes of initi-
atives created in response to the heroin and opioid epidemic to the
temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the
chairs of the assembly and senate committees on alcoholism and drug
abuse, the chair of the assembly ways and means committee and the chair
of the senate finance committee.
(2) Such reports shall include, to the extent practicable and applica-
ble, information on:
(i) The number of individuals enrolled in the initiative in the
preceding quarter;
(ii) The number of individuals who completed the treatment program in
the preceding quarter;
(iii) The number of individuals discharged from the treatment program
in the preceding quarter;
(iv) The age and sex of the individuals served;
(v) Relevant regional data about the individuals;
(vi) The populations served; and
(vii) The outcomes and effectiveness of each initiative surveyed.
(3) Such initiatives shall include opioid treatment programs, crisis
detoxification programs, 24/7 open access centers, adolescent club hous-
es, family navigator programs, peer engagement specialists, recovery
community and outreach centers, regional addiction resource centers and
the state implementation of the federal opioid state targeted response
initiatives.
(4) Such information shall be provided quarterly, beginning no later
than July first, two thousand nineteen.
(n) The office in consultation with the office of mental health, the
department of health, the division of housing and community renewal and
any other agency that may oversee an appropriate program or service
shall monitor and ensure funds appropriated pursuant to section ninety-
nine-nn of the state finance law are expended for services and programs
in accordance with such section.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
