The Affordable Care Act, Substance Use Disorders, and Low-Income Clients: Implications for Social Work

Abstract

Social workers are leaders in the substance abuse services field and may often work in substance use disorder (SUD) education, prevention, assessment, treatment, or resource coordination and case management roles. As the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) (2010) drives changes in the fields of health and behavioral health, social workers have an opportunity to lead structural changes at the micro and macro levels that will have a positive impact on low-income clients with SUDs. In this article, authors examine the current state of SUDs and health care access, the impact of the ACA on the field, and implications for social work practice and education. Social workers should seek specialized education and credentialing in SUD services, know how to help clients apply for health care coverage, and advocate for integrated substance abuse treatment and health care programs and an expansion of Medicaid in their local communities. Social workers are well positioned to be a voice for clients to ensure that the current structural changes result in a better, integrated system of care that is able to respond to the needs of low-income clients with SUDs.

Regulation and Quality Assurance for the Mental Health and Substance Use Health Workforce: A Scoping Review

“…De nitional and conceptual clarity is important to understand, analyze, compare, and improve regulatory design when discussing a diverse and varied range of practitioners that are regulated differently. Moreover, the reviewed research studies highlighted the need for additional training in areas not currently covered by curricula of some training programs [22][23][24] and developing competencies in caring for culturally diverse populations [28,30,31].…”

“…The reviewed literature identi ed a need for additional training in areas not covered by the curricula of some training programs [22,23]. For instance, specialized education and credentialing in substance use health services [22] was identi ed as one such need.…”

“…The reviewed literature identi ed a need for additional training in areas not covered by the curricula of some training programs [22,23]. For instance, specialized education and credentialing in substance use health services [22] was identi ed as one such need. Of required courses in the standard curricula of US social work programs, only 10 out of 210 schools (4.7%) had one required course with a focus on alcohol and other drugs [23].…”

Opioid Addiction in Rural North Carolina: A Criminal Justice and Public Health Issue

“…In their study, Stogner and Gibson (2010) examined a health strain hypothesis involving the physical ailments that lead to strain and criminal behavior, such as substance use and the inability to access appropriate healthcare for treating the source of pain or illness, as well as the substance abuse or addiction (McCabe & Wahler, 2016). They argued that this leads to increased strain and forces those needing healthcare to act criminally when barred from legal medical assistance.…”

“…Those who are most addictive are likely to experience greater difficulty maintaining or finding employment. Therefore, their treatment will be severely limited, unless they live in a state that provides Medicaid expansion ( McCabe & Wahler, 2016). Treatment for addiction should also cover co-occurring medical or mental health disorders.…”