GCSA-Washington Roundup

Senate Judiciary Committee Holds Confirmation Hearing for Mary Ann Solberg, Nominee for Deputy Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy

This week the Senate Judiciary Committee held a confirmation hearing for Mary Ann Solberg, the nominee for Deputy Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). In addition to reviewing her nomination, the Committee also reviewed the nominations of Scott Burns for Deputy Director of State and Local Affairs and Dr. Barry Crane for Deputy Director for Supply Reduction at ONDCP.

Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) chaired the hearing as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, while Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Ranking Member of the full Judiciary Committee, and Charles Grassley (R-IA) joined him in introducing and questioning the nominees. Several other members of Congress also attended the hearing to express their support for the nominees, including Senators Carl Levin (D-MI) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Representative Sander Levin (D-MI), who attended to express their support for Mary Ann Solberg, who has lead community-based drug and alcohol prevention programs and coalitions in Troy, Michigan for many years. Most recently she has served as the Executive Director of the Coalition of Healthy Communities and the Troy Community Coalition for the Prevention of Drug and Alcohol Abuse. In his questions to Ms. Solberg, Senator Biden asked her to describe prevention programs that she would promote nationally in her new position as Deputy Director of ONDCP. Ms. Solberg identified community-based prevention programs that focus on both adult and youth attitudes as crucial because they produce results. Questions by other Senators were brief, with Senator Grassley limiting his questions to Ms. Solberg's planned work week schedule and security clearance status.

It is expected that the Judiciary Committee could hold a vote on these nominations as early as next week, paving the way for a vote by the full Senate anytime thereafter.

Legislation to Provide Alcohol and Drug Training for Health Professionals
Introduced in Senate

Last week, Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) introduced the Health Professionals Substance Abuse Education Act (S. 1966) in the Senate, and Representative Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) is expected to introduce companion legislation in the House soon. The legislation cites data indicating that many health care professionals have not had clinical training on alcohol and drug issues and that a large proportion of these professionals are unprepared to recognize symptoms of addiction. For example, it cites a survey which found that less than 1 in 5 doctors feel confident about diagnosing alcoholism, and only 17 percent feel qualified to identify drug use.

The legislation would authorize $5.5 million a year to fund training programs for health professionals who are generalists, and not already specialists in alcohol and drug addiction. These programs could be used to train physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and psychologists to recognize alcohol and drug problems in their patients or their patients' families. Furthermore, the training would make them capable of intervening, providing treatment, or making referral to another treatment provider. Each year, $4.5 million could be provided to the Health Resources and Services Administration and $1 million could be provided to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for these programs.

Biden's legislation also seeks to expand the number of university health care training programs that incorporate alcohol and drug addiction in their curriculum. To achieve this goal, $3.5 million a year would be authorized to establish university fellowships for faculty with alcohol and drug treatment expertise. The program would fund up to 50 percent of the annual salary of fellows who would devote a substantial amount of teaching hours to alcohol and drug issues and who would work to incorporate alcohol and drug issues into the required curricula of training programs.