Illinois Opioid Remediation Advisory Board
Access & Equity Working Group Meeting
May 14, 2024
Virtual Meeting Held Via Zoom
Meeting Minutes
Access and Equity Working Group Members
Joel K. Johnson, TASC, Inc. (Chair)
David Gomel, PhD, Rosecrance
Mike Tyson, Take Action Today
Shane Pettigrew, Illinois State Police
Jonnell Benson-Cobbs, DPN, Serenity Treatment and Counseling Center
Tim Devitt, PsyD, Private Practice
Gail Richardson, West Side Opioid Task Force
Debbie Holsapple, Jefferson County Comprehensive Services
Charles Stratton, Department of Human Resources, Sangamon County
James L. Grafton, Administrator, Rock Island County
Diana Bottari, MD, Advocate Aurora Health
Blanca Campos, Community Behavioral Healthcare Association
John Werning, Chicago Recovery Alliance
Mark Mulroe, A Safe Haven Foundation
Christopher Hoff, DuPage County Health Department
Michael Wahl, MD, Illinois Poison Center, Illinois Health and Hospital Association
Matthew Richards, Chicago Department of Public Health
Welcome and Roll Call
Joel Johnson welcomed the group and called the meeting to order. Sue Pickett, PhD of Advocates for Human Potential, Inc. (AHP), facilitator, conducted roll call. Mike Tyson, Shane Pettigrew, Gail Richardson, Mark Mulroe, Blanca Campos, Michael Wahl and Matthew Richards were not present. John Werning and Debbie Holsapple arrived after roll call. All other members were present. Quorum was established.
Review and Approval of March 12, 2024 Meeting Minutes
The March 12, 2024 meeting minutes were reviewed. Mr. Johnson called for a motion to approve the meeting minutes. Christopher Hoff made a motion to approve the meeting minutes. Charles Stratton seconded the motion to approve the meeting minutes. All members present voted in favor of the motion. The motion carried.
April IORAB Meeting Update
Mr. Johnson gave an update on the April 18 IORAB meeting. Three recommendations were approved:
- Training and Supervision: This recommendation will provide funds to support paid training experiences/field training experiences and the expansion of dedicated clinical supervision (when not reimbursed or funded by other means).
- Contingency Management (CM): This recommendation will support a pilot to trial CM across the state. CM involves rewarding or punishing a behavior to increase or decrease its frequency, respectively.
- Opioid Treatment Program (OTP): This recommendation will provide funds to establish partnerships between OTPs and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), hospitals, clinics and public departments of health. Partnerships created between existing OTPs and medical entities to start new satellite OTP locations within medical sites will also be supported.
- Dr. Pickett stated that the recommendations will move to the Governor's Opioid Prevention and Recovery Steering Committee (Steering Committee) on May 30th. The Steering Committee will vote on whether to approve the recommendations for funding. Approved recommendations move to the Attorney General's Office for certification, and then to Illinois Department of Human Services, Division of Substance Use Prevention & Recovery (IDHS/SUPR) to start the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) process.
Two new NOFOs funded through cannabis monies were issued by the Regional Care Coordination Agency (RCCA):
- Public Awareness Campaigns on Substance Use and Supports (PACSS). PACSS programs will develop and implement campaigns that align with the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act requirements, paying special attention to individuals who are at highest risk of substance use and communities disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs.
- West Side and South Side Opioid Heroin Taskforces. Funding is available for West Side and South Side Opioid and Heroin Taskforce(s). These taskforces will organize all operations, working primarily to assemble and engage community members and stakeholders in a collaborative campaign that includes outreach, education, harm reduction, and referral activities.
Priority Recommendations for the IORAB
The working group discussed telehealth recommendations.
- Telehealth is used more frequently in therapy, which is predominantly funded through commercial insurance, than for community services that are predominantly funded by Medicaid.
- Technology needs include phones and reliable internet service. Rural areas don't have the fiber optic internet and Wi-Fi service that is available in cities.
- Clients submit urine drug screens at clinics and have telehealth appointments with a clinician. This means that patients in different locations can be seen by a clinician in one location, which helps with limited clinician resources. The ability to credential people across states would be helpful. Funds could support the submission of drug screens virtually through a third-party vendor.
- Funds could be used to equip mobile vans with hot spots/telehealth access.
- Funds could provide internet connectivity for persons in recovery. It is important for patients to have both access to Wi-Fi/hotspots and confidential places to use the hotspots where they can also receive assistance.
- Mr. Johnson asked if opioid settlement funds can be used to purchase vehicles. Mr. Wilkerson said this is not currently possible and that issues related to the purchase of vehicles are being work on.
- Working group members use the telehealth platforms Doximity, Zoom, Doxy.me, EHR MethodOne, and WebEx. Platforms in which the client checks in and the provider knows that the client is waiting are useful. Funds could be used for this technology.
- Funds could be used for the purchase of laptops, iPads, and Chromebooks. Chromebooks are effective and not expensive or complicated. There was discussion about whether this is already covered by Medicaid. Mr. Wilkerson said this can be part of the recommendation because some providers don't have Medicaid funding.
- Mr. Johnson asked if white noise machines used to maintain client confidentiality are an allowable use of resources. Jim Wilkerson suggested that white noise machines can be included in the recommendation for now, and if this is not an allowable use of funds, it will be taken out of the recommendation.
- White noise is a short-term solution, and a longer-term solution is to make clinician spaces more accommodating.
- A member said they are having issues with reimbursement from the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS). Legislative review and action may be necessary. Dr. Pickett stated that the group can't make recommendations related to legislation. Mr. Johnson said that this issue can be brought to trade organizations.
- Funds could support a telehealth awareness campaign so that communities know that telehealth services are an option.
- The hub and spoke model and embedding technology at sites are important for sustainability; mobile devices are a one-time investment.
The intent of the recommendation was summarized and will be further developed after the meeting: Funding to support telehealth expansion/ technology/ access to resources and hotspots, mobile devices (phones, Chromebooks, tablets) that increases access to prevention, treatment, and recovery support services. These include physical spaces and mobile spaces for people to access/use telehealth and support for clients to use telehealth, as well as the infrastructure, software for organizations to utilize and increase capacity for telehealth. Awareness campaign to educate and encourage people and providers to use telehealth especially in communities that are disconnected/lack access to services.
* Mr. Johnson asked for a motion to move the recommendation forward. Mr. Hoff made a motion. Dr. Devitt seconded the motion. All present voted in favor of moving the recommendation forward. The motion passed.
Public Participation
A member of the public said they wanted to get a better understanding of the discussions related to recommendations before they move to the Steering Committee.
Adjourn
Mr. Johnson asked for a motion to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Stratton made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Hoff seconded the motion to adjourn. Mr. Johnson adjourned the meeting. The next Access & Equity working group meeting will be held via Zoom on July 9, 2024, from 10:30am-11:30am.
