This bill revises the Mental Hygiene Law provisions governing the Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS), renaming references from alcoholism and substance abuse services to addiction services and supports and broadening the office’s scope from alcohol and substance use disorders to “addictive disorders.” It expressly includes people who are at risk of an addictive disorder, and it adds compulsive gambling education, prevention, and treatment within that framework. The bill also updates the office’s responsibilities for prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, recovery maintenance, education, and training, and it directs the office to work with local governments, community organizations, and other state agencies in carrying out those functions.
A major feature of the bill is the creation and standardization of the term “addiction professional.” It authorizes OASAS to issue licenses, credentials, certificates, or authorizations for addiction professionals, establishes minimum qualifications and a definition of the profession, and creates an addiction professionals board to advise on the credentialing process. Existing credentials such as credentialed alcoholism and substance abuse counselor, prevention specialist, problem gambling counselor, recovery peer advocate, and related designations would be treated as addiction professional credentials consistent with the person’s experience and education. The bill also updates training expectations to include trauma-informed, patient-centered care, co-occurring disorder referral, sensitivity training, and evolving best practices in harm reduction and long-term recovery.
The bill further expands or clarifies OASAS duties in several program areas. It requires the office to maintain lists of certified agencies and addiction professionals for court-related and motor-vehicle-related treatment referrals, to monitor addiction treatment services in correctional facilities and report annually on those programs, and to review and improve services for veterans with addiction disorders and co-occurring mental health conditions. It also continues and updates public education efforts on heroin and opioids, school-based problem gambling materials, youth substance misuse education, quarterly reporting on opioid-response initiatives, oversight of certain appropriated funds, and SBIRT training materials for health care providers.
The bill’s impact on state law is to modernize statutory language, broaden the legal and administrative definition of addiction-related services, and formalize a more unified credentialing structure for addiction-related practitioners. It would affect OASAS, credential holders, treatment providers, correctional facilities, courts, schools, health care providers, and agencies involved in addiction prevention and treatment. It also makes unauthorized use of the protected professional titles a violation under the Penal Law, reinforcing the regulatory framework around these credentials.
No committee transcript or vote history was provided, so there is no recorded floor or committee sentiment to assess. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears generally supportive of expanded addiction services, harm reduction, gambling disorder treatment, and professional standardization. Potential points of contention include the breadth of the new “addictive disorder” concept, the inclusion of compulsive gambling within the addiction-services framework, the creation of new credentialing and fee-setting authority, and the regulatory implications of reclassifying existing titles and professional designations.
The bill amends the Mental Hygiene Law to rename and expand the Office of Addiction Services and Supports’ responsibilities, replacing many references to alcoholism and substance abuse with addiction services, addiction disorder, and addictive disorder. It creates a statutory framework for “addiction professionals,” authorizes OASAS to issue and regulate licenses, credentials, certificates, and authorizations, and updates training, reporting, and oversight duties across treatment, corrections, veterans’ services, schools, courts, and public education. It also preserves and reclassifies existing credentials under the new umbrella and makes unauthorized use of protected titles a Penal Law violation.
No committee discussion or vote record was provided, so there is no direct evidence of legislative sentiment from debate or roll call. The bill’s text suggests a generally favorable policy direction toward expanding access to addiction-related services, modernizing terminology, and strengthening professional standards. The measure appears framed as a public-health and workforce modernization bill rather than a punitive one.
The main potential areas of contention are the bill’s broadening of statutory language from substance abuse to “addictive disorder,” its inclusion of people “at risk” of addiction, and its explicit incorporation of compulsive gambling into the addiction-services system. Stakeholders could also dispute the new credentialing authority, fee-setting provisions, and the redefinition or consolidation of existing professional titles. Because no transcripts or votes were provided, no specific opponents or supporters can be identified from the record.