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Public Policy |
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Testimony to Joint Public Hearing
Friday, March 2, 2007
Ferd Haverly MS, CASAC
Thank you for this opportunity to be part of this public hearing to consider the
"adequacy of existing substance abuse treatment services and resources available
to people released from incarceration."
I address you as president of the Association for Addiction Professionals of New York
(AAPNY) and as a person currently credentialed and employed as an addiction counselor in
New York. AAPNY is the state affiliate of the national, Washington-based organization
NAADAC "the Association for Addiction Professionals."
I have worked as an addiction counselor for the past 13 years and I am currently a
counselor at an outpatient clinic in the Albany area. I have a case load of approximately
forty individuals. My caseload includes individuals recently released from incarceration,
normally referred to our agency by the Division of Parole.
I am an active member of the OASAS sponsored Steering Committee on Workforce Development
and I serve as a field supervisor for Hudson Valley Community College's chemical
dependency program.
I have a Master's degree and my salary is approximately $32,000 per year yet my salary has
not kept up with cost of living expenses and I make approximately $20,000 less than
colleagues providing similar treatment services at state addiction treatment centers
(ATC's).
I have traveled here today to share with you my concerns about the status of the addiction
treatment workforce and the critical need for you to support public investment in that
workforce.
Investing in treatment services makes sense.
(The following information is from "Addictions Treatment When Knowing the Facts Can Help"
published by IRETA - the Institute for Research, Education and Training in Addictions. I have
included a copy of this booklet in the materials provided to committee.)
The conclusion that addictions treatment is effective is demonstrated in over 600
published scientific papers.
Relapse rates for treatment of alcohol, opioids and cocaine are less than that for
hypertension and asthma, and equivalent to those of diabetes.
Addictions treatment has been shown to cut drug use by half, reduce crime by 80
percent and reduce arrests up to 64 percent.
For every additional dollar invested in addictions treatment the taxpayer
saves $7.46 in costs to society (including the cost of incarceration)
When adding the savings to healthcare, for every $1 spent in addictions treatment,
society benefits by greater than $12.
The cost of addictions treatment is 15 times less than the cost of incarcerating
a person for a drug-related crime.
Treatment works but it will only work if we have a solid workforce to provide
appropriate treatment services.
The fact that our addictions workforce is in crisis has been well documented.
The following quote is from the OASAS publication "The Addictions Profession: A Workforce
in Crisis" (2003)
"Programs are typically understaffed; vacancies are difficult to fill, staff are stressed
out, underpaid, and often providing duties for which they are inadequately trained; staff
turnover continues to climb; complying with regulatory staffing mandates is becoming more
and more difficult; career advancement opportunities are limited or non-existent; and the
work environment is unappealing when compared with other career options."
The fact that the treatment workforce remains in crisis was documented by the 2006
Qualified Health Professional Survey sponsored by OASAS (The full report can be found
at http://www.oasas.state.ny.us/hps/state/documents/2007LSPGuidelines.pdf)
The survey asked programs to evaluate their recent experiences in recruiting and retaining
Qualified Health Professionals over the past three years.
Programs reported the greatest difficulty recruiting CASACs, as 68 percent reported having more
difficulty recruiting compared to only 4 percent reporting less difficulty.
Statewide, programs indicated that low pay and/or benefits is the greatest contributing
circumstance to recruiting and retaining QHPs, followed by a lack of qualified candidates,
and a lack of interest in the field.
During the past several years OASAS has shown an interest in addressing these issues and has
received national recognition for its efforts. This effort has led to some progress in
stemming the decline in credentialed counselors and the number of CASAC applicants has
increased but the overall situation remains discouraging. Fundamental issues remain
unaddressed; and until they are, the turnover rate will remain high as will the average
age of CASACs. The current average age of a CASAC is over fifty years old.
The core problem is that the system is underfinanced. A higher level of investment is
needed to provide competitive salaries, career advancement opportunities and adequate
supervision for counselors. This investment should be combined with structural changes
which would include a reduction of the administrative burden on counselors and increased
opportunities to develop peer support systems and counseling skills based on
scientifically-based best practices.
The day-to-day work of addiction professionals is noble and important. It helps not only
the individuals and families we directly impact, but society as a whole. The benefits of,
and the need for, the work we do is indisputable. It's also indisputable that the
treatment workforce in is trouble. We need your help.
Thank you for this opportunity to speak.
Ferd Haverly MS, CASAC
Counselor
Hudson Mohawk Recovery Center
743 Columbia Turnpike
East Greenbush, New York 12061
1-518-477-7535
1-518-477-7555 (fax)
President
Association for Addiction Professionals of New York (AAPNY)
PO Box 4053
Albany, New York 12204
1-877-862-2769
www.aapnycounselor.org
fhaverly@nycap.rr.com
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