License mandate would elevate recovery coaches
The opioid epidemic has challenged the medical community’s ability to help individuals trying to wean themselves off drug dependency.
One method that has shown promise employs recovered or recovering addicts with whom those in remission can relate, unlike social workers, who may not understand the difficulty in trying to resume a sober existence.
These “coaches” can support people in recovery with the kind of coordination and mentorship that other health professionals can’t provide.
However, this relatively new addiction-mitigation tool operates with no clear definition of what constitutes someone sufficiently trained in this profession.
Currently in Massachusetts, anyone can call themselves a recovery coach, even if they have no experience in addiction treatment or are only days into the drug-rehab process themselves.
And while there are a few programs set up to train and certify coaches, health experts say they’re not comprehensive enough for the heavy responsibility that comes with the job.
One state lawmaker with a background in social work wants to create standards to which all drug-recovery coaches in the state must adhere.
Rep. Jim O’day believes state health officials can lower the state’s record-high number of opioid-related deaths — 2,357 confirmed, fatal opioidrelated overdoses in 2022, a 2.5% increase from 2021 — by creating a licensing board for recovery coaches, specifically those who have personal experience overcoming addiction and substance-use disorders.
The West Boylston Democrat said his proposal targets a workforce shortage and ensures that recovery coaches— defined as professionals who use “shared understanding, respect and mutual empowerment to help others become and stay engaged in the process of recovery from a substance use disorder” — receive fair compensation for their services.
Under the bill, a 12-member Board of Registration of Licensed Recovery Coaches, established within the Department of Public Health, would be authorized to license and regulate recovery coaches, including by establishing an ethical code of coaches’ conduct.
“Presently, we have very, very few recovery coaches,” O’day told the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery during a hearing Monday.
“Knock on wood, we do have some, but presently only Masshealth (Medicaid) is supporting them and paying for their services, and they’re limited in how many folks are providing the service,” said O’day.
A companion Senate bill awaits a hearing before the Joint Committee on Public Health.
People experiencing substance abuse disorder may struggle to connect with and trust licensed clinical social workers, O’day said.
“They want to possibly have the opportunity to speak with someone who actually has walked in the same shoes as that person that’s in early recovery,” he said.
Sen. John Velis, who’s been in recovery for nearly seven years, told O’day he struggled to see “eye to eye” with highly trained professionals who lacked lived experience.
But Velis, a Westfield Democrat and co- chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use, and Recovery, felt more comfortable interacting with recovery coaches who broke down barriers and enabled himto discuss his own experiences.
There have been previous attempts at formalizing drug recovery- coach regulations and programs.
A Recovery Coach Commission was established by Section 101 of Chapter 208 of the Acts of 2018.
The commission was charged with:
• Reviewing training opportunities for recovery coaches;
• Recommending standards for credentialing a recovery coach, including, whether recovery coaches should be subject to a board of registration;
• Gathering all relevant data related to recovery coaches.
The commission authored a report of progress in August 2019, with no apparent written follow-up, the lack of which might have coincided with the onset a few months later of another epidemic, COVID-19.
That opioid addiction treatment law signed by Gov. Charlie Baker in 2018 also called for correctional facilities in Hampden, Hampshire, Middlesex, Norfolk and Franklin counties to run a three-year Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT) pilot program.
As part of the Middlesex Sheriff Peter Koutoujian’s program, participating inmates learned about the different forms of MAT. Before being released, inmates receive an injection of Vivitrol, the brand name for naltrexone, which helps prevent relapse.
But most importantly, they’re teamed up with a recovery coach, who scheduled follow-up medical and treatment visits.
Koutoujian said at the time these recovery coaches are instrumental to the program’s success. They monitor the progress of these released prisoners, which provides valuable data and the support they need to succeed.
We believe Rep. O’day’s measure — a long overdue initiative — would eliminate a glaring discrepancy by creating a drug recovery coach board of licensure, similar to what many other professions must follow.
Working by the same rules, professionally trained, relatable individuals can be difference-makers in the lives of recovering addicts.