SENATE MEMORIAL 56

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Eric G. Griego

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE INTERAGENCY BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PURCHASING COLLABORATIVE TO DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE, STATEWIDE PLAN FOR TREATMENT OF OPIOID ADDICTION AMONG ADOLESCENTS.

     WHEREAS, in 2005, New Mexico had the second-highest drug-induced death rate in the United States, with nearly thirty deaths for every one hundred thousand persons, compared to a rate of just over eleven deaths for every one hundred thousand persons in the United States; and

     WHEREAS, the total unintentional drug overdose death rate in New Mexico increased by one hundred eighty percent between 1990 and 2005; and

     WHEREAS, adolescent deaths from opioid overdose accounted for twelve percent of all opioid deaths in New Mexico in 2009, up from two percent prior to 2004; and

     WHEREAS, a 2007 national survey, conducted by the federal substance abuse and mental health services administration, indicated that New Mexico teens between the ages of twelve and seventeen use illicit drugs more heavily than the United States average; and

     WHEREAS, according to data collected from the 2009 youth risk and resiliency survey, fourteen and three-tenths percent of New Mexico students used prescription painkillers to get high that year, an increase of nearly two percent from 2007; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico lacks a system of coordinated and effective care for treatment of opioid-addicted adolescents; and

     WHEREAS, there are virtually no outpatient facilities in New Mexico that offer combined medical and psychological treatment of adolescent opioid addiction; and

     WHEREAS, there are no inpatient facilities in New Mexico that offer combined medical and psychological treatment of adolescent opioid addiction; and

     WHEREAS, a November 4, 2009 study, conducted by the department of health in response to House Memorial 9, which was passed in the first session of the forty-ninth legislature, acknowledged the seriousness of opioid use among adolescents; and

     WHEREAS, despite the report's numerous recommendations for an ongoing commitment to addressing this problem, no comprehensive plan for treatment of adolescents has been developed;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the interagency behavioral health purchasing collaborative be requested to develop a comprehensive, statewide plan for treatment of opioid addiction among adolescents; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the interagency behavioral health purchasing coordinate in the development of the plan with the behavioral health services division of the human services department; the substance abuse subcommittee of the behavioral health planning council; the children, youth and families department; the department of health; and other member agencies of the interagency behavioral health purchasing collaborative that are involved in the treatment of adolescents with opioid addiction; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the comprehensive plan, including steps for implementation of the plan, be presented to the interim legislative health and human services committee by October 2011; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the chief executive officer of the interagency behavioral health purchasing collaborative, the behavioral health services division of the human services department and the substance abuse subcommittee of the behavioral health planning council.

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