New Name for DASA

DASA Is Now SUPR

Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) Secretary James Dimas and Director Danielle Kirby are pleased to announce a new name for the Division of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (DASA). Effective immediately, the new name for DASA is the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery (SUPR). This new name removes stigmatizing language and supports the commitment of the Division for prevention of and recovery from substance use disorders.

This new name is contained in House Bill 4795 sponsored by the Honorable Tom Demmer and Senate Bill 2834 sponsored by the Honorable Dave Syverson. These two pieces of legislation will amend The Alcoholism and Other Drug Dependency Act, which is the enabling legislation for the authority and functions of the Division. This Act has not been significantly amended for almost 40 years and changes are long overdue to reflect the evolution of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment over the past four decades. We fully support the improvements contained within this legislation and they will be used as the foundation for future policy and rule amendment. The new name for the Act will be the Substance Use Disorder Act.

Over the next few months, the Department will be working to inform legislators, providers, other stakeholders and the general public about the changes in the Act and the new division name. This new name will soon be incorporated into all FY 2019 documents and we realize it will be some time before the transition is fully complete. In the interim, we ask your cooperation in replacing all references to DASA and other stigmatizing language such as "alcoholism", "addiction", "addict", "abuse" and "dependence" in your manuals, policies and other related documents. Please see the DSM5, or we recommend this article for appropriate replacements for stigmatizing labels.

In the near future, a new email address for the Division Help Desk will be identified. In the interim, please direct any questions to: DoIT.DASAHelp@Illinois.gov