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AB-2328 Youth Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Program Act of 2018.(2017-2018)

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Date Published: 03/23/2018 09:00 PM
AB2328:v98#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  March 23, 2018

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2328

Introduced by Assembly Member Nazarian

February 13, 2018

An act to amend Section 11811 repeal and add Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11759) of Part 1 of Division 10.5 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to alcohol and drug treatment.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2328, as amended, Nazarian. Alcohol and drug treatment. Youth Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Program Act of 2018.
Existing law consolidated within the State Department of Health Care Services all substance use disorder functions and programs from the former State Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs.
The existing Adolescent Alcohol and Drug Treatment and Recovery Program Act of 1998, which authorized the department to establish community-based nonresidential and residential recovery programs to intervene and treat the problems of alcohol and other drug use among youth, became inoperative on July 1, 2013.
This bill would repeal those inoperative provisions and would enact the Youth Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Program Act of 2018, with similar provisions to, in part, require the department to establish community-based nonresidential and residential treatment and recovery programs to intervene and treat the problems of alcohol and drug use among youth under 21 years of age. The bill would additionally require the department, in collaboration with counties and providers of substance use disorder services, to establish through regulation criteria for participation, programmatic requirements, treatment standards, and terms and conditions for funding. The bill would require the criteria to also include consideration of indicators of drug and alcohol use among youth. The bill would require the department to report to the Legislature during budget hearings regarding the status of the implementation of the program. The bill would make related findings and declarations.

Existing law provides counties with broad discretion in the choice of services they utilize to alleviate the alcohol and other drug problems of specific population groups and the community when spending funds allocated to them by the state for that purpose.

This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to those provisions.

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) California families are confronted with challenging problems associated with drug and alcohol use among children and youth under 21 years of age. Families are in desperate need of assistance in the management and treatment of substance use in the youth population.
(b) In 2015–16, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health classified slightly more than 5 percent of California adolescents 12 to 17 years of age, inclusive, as misusing either alcohol or illicit drugs, while substance use disorder (SUD) rates among young adults 18 to 25 years of age, inclusive, were as high as 15 percent.
(c) Multiple studies have established that the developing brains of children and youth are more vulnerable to alcohol and other drug-related problems than those of adults. Most adults suffering from SUDs developed a pattern of alcohol and other drug dependence as adolescents (18 years of age or under) or young adults (19 to 25 years of age, inclusive). Youth with SUDs have high rates of cooccurring mental health disorders, along with other health, social, academic, relational, and legal challenges. Due to these complexities, services for youth require a different approach to drug prevention, early intervention, and treatment of SUDs than that used for adults.
(d) The draft “Youth Services Policy Manual” from the State Department of Health Care Services notes that “... addressing adolescent substance use is a cost-effective, common-sense approach to preventing future challenges in other social service and public health related areas... .”
(e) This act recognizes that federal, state, and local drug control spending assigns low priority to early intervention and treatment of youth SUDs, despite the extensive research that confirms that treatment is the most cost-effective way to address SUDs and drug-related crimes.
(f) In California, the primary strategy for addressing youth substance use and related problems has been placed on the Division of Juvenile Justice, probation departments, and other law enforcement agencies.
(g) California counties, which administer community alcohol and drug prevention and treatment programs, have long been in need of resources to develop youth-specific treatment and early intervention programs for children, adolescents, and young adults who have or are at risk of developing a SUD.
(h) California has very few public sector treatment resources for youth SUDs. Proposition 64, the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA), dedicates a portion of net revenue to drug education, prevention, early intervention, and treatment for youth. One of the stated intents of Proposition 64 is to generate revenue for youth SUD treatment and prevention. Tax revenues allocated to the Youth Education, Prevention, Early Intervention and Treatment Account (Youth Account) could eventually be in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, according to a fiscal analysis of the measure by the Legislative Analyst’s Office.
(i) One of the primary goals of Proposition 64 revenue disbursements from the Youth Account should be to develop a continuum of care for youth SUDs that is based on public health principles. This system of care should provide supportive services for youth that neither stigmatize nor criminalize youth substance use.
(j) Proposition 64 tax revenues will provide the State of California with a unique opportunity to develop a new, county-based continuum of care for the prevention and treatment of youth SUDs that can work in conjunction with other community resources.
(k) In alignment with federal guidance, a youth SUD continuum of care is developmentally relevant. This continuum of care would include screening for early identification and intervention, assessment, outpatient modalities that involve families whenever possible, intensive outpatient treatment, partial hospitalization, medication-assisted treatment, case management, continuing care, recovery services and supports, parent or caregiver support, and residential treatment.
(l) To accomplish these critical goals, Youth Education, Prevention, Early Intervention and Treatment Account funds from Proposition 64 revenue must remain sequestered, independent of preexisting treatment facilities for adults, and directed toward the creation and maintenance of a youth continuum of care developed by the State Department of Health Care Services in collaboration with counties, providers, and other stakeholders.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11759) of Part 1 of Division 10.5 of the Health and Safety Code is repealed.

SEC. 3.

 Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11759) is added to Part 1 of Division 10.5 of the Health and Safety Code, to read:
CHAPTER  4. Substance Use Disorder Treatment for Youth

11759.
 This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the Youth Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Program Act of 2018.

11759.1.
 The department, in collaboration with counties and providers of substance use disorder services, shall establish regulations regarding community-based nonresidential and residential treatment and recovery programs to intervene and treat the problems of alcohol and drug use among youth under 21 years of age.

11759.2.
 The department, in collaboration with counties and providers of substance use disorder services, shall establish through regulation criteria for participation, programmatic requirements, treatment standards, and terms and conditions for funding. The criteria shall also include consideration of indicators of drug and alcohol use among youth.

11759.3.
 Nothing in this chapter shall preclude regional approaches to service delivery by counties, including the utilization of community-based nonresidential and residential programs.

11759.4.
 The department, in collaboration with the counties and providers of substance use disorder services, shall report to the Legislature, during budget hearings, regarding the status of the implementation of this chapter.

11759.5.
 (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that the department seek funding for this chapter through Medi-Cal, federal financial participation, and through cannabis tax revenues available to the department in the Youth Education, Prevention, Early Intervention and Treatment Account established pursuant to the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act.
(b) It is further the intent of the Legislature that no more than 5 percent of funds made available to the department pursuant to subdivision (a) be expended for purposes of developing regulations, standards, and procedures to implement this chapter.

SECTION 1.Section 11811 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
11811.

Counties shall have broad discretion in the choice of services they use to alleviate the alcohol and other drug problems of specific population groups and the community. Those services shall include services for alcohol and other drug abuse prevention and treatment.