NJAMHAA FY2022 Annual Report

17 Addictions Practice Group Chair: Mary Gay Abbott-Young, LCADC, NJAMHAA Board Member and President, Rescue Mission of Trenton Vice Chair: Kendria McWilliams, MBA, Chief Execu - tive Officer, Maryville Addiction Treatment Center The Addictions Practice Group concretized its focus with the following mission statement: “To discuss areas of policy and practice that affect providers’ operations and develop recommendations to inform state and federal policy makers and elected officials on the impact of their decisions and help make the best case for addressing these issues.” This group has been proactive in trying to resolve long delays in obtaining facility licenses. They met w ith Latrisha Johnson, MS, Program Manager, Divi - sion of Certificate of Need & Licensing – Behavioral Health, Depart- ment of Health (DOH), in No- vember and Jan- uary, and again in February 2022 along with Stefanie Mozgai, RN, Assistant Commissioner, Certificate of Need & Licensing . NJAMHAA staff and the Addictions Practice Group are persevering in their advocacy for improvements in the licensure pro - cess and turnaround times, as well as extensions of temporary emergency licensure and certifica - tion that were granted during the pandemic, to ensure organizations can continue to serve individuals in need. In anticipation of opportunities to provide input on the carve-in of substance use disorder services into Med - icaid Managed Care, the Addictions Practice Group, along with members of the Residential Providers Practice Group, are developing a white paper on the expected challenges associated with the 1115 Waiver. Adult Mental Health Practice Group Co-Chairs: Julie Drew, LCSW, MPA, System Exec - utive Director, Behavioral Health, AtlantiCare; Frank Ghinassi, PhD, ABPP, President and CEO, Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care and Senior Vice President, Behavioral Health and Addictions Service Line, RWJBarnabas Health Both co-chairs also have been members of the NJAMHAA and New Jersey Mental Health Institute (NJMHI) Boards. Julie Drew retired in April 2022 and is continuing to serve on the NJMHI Board. The Adult Mental Health Practice Group hosted several presentations and panel discussions to give providers a wealth of information and resources to en - hance their services. Topics were research initiatives being undertaken by the Rutgers Center for Ge - nomics of Psychiatric Health and Addiction and the Center for Precision Behavioral Health; the correlations and differences between trauma resulting from the pandemic and trauma resulting from 9/11, and implications for treatment; and the b enefits of partnerships between mental healthcare provid- ers and law enforcement personnel. In addition, staff from Modivcare (formerly LogistiCare) and the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (DMAHS) joined the group to ad- dress concerns regarding trans- portation Modi- vcare arranges for providers’ clients. Discussions with Modivcare and DMAHS will continue during upcoming meetings. “I remember thinking to myself, ‘Wow! There is such a wealth of information being presented among agencies. This is the place to be!’ It was so encouraging to see that for myself and such an eye opener as I was new to the behavioral health field.” – Karen Acker, West Bergen Mental Healthcare