New Addiction Treatment Advocacy Group Unites 9 Companies ‘To Have a Voice’

Nine outpatient addiction treatment organizations have launched a new industry advocacy organization focused on office-based outpatient treatment (OBOT). Monikered the National Alliance for Comprehensive Addiction Treatment Solutions (NACATS), the nonprofit advocacy organization is led by Spero Health co-founder and CEO Steve Priest. He has taken on the role of president of the organization. In its […]

Why MAT for Alcohol Use Disorder Gets Overshadowed

A small portion of Americans who have alcohol use disorder (AUD) get potentially lifesaving and effective treatment. Patients and providers alike overlook medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for AUD due to rather potent market forces. Unlike most substances for which people seek treatment, huge sectors of American society and the economy encourage the consumption of alcohol. Spirits […]

Overcoming Rural Barriers: Tackling the Opioid Epidemic with Telehealth and Mobile Care

Opioid addiction disproportionately affects rural communities, with 42% of rural residents reporting they or a family member have experienced opioid addiction, according to KFF Health News.  Rising overdose death rates in rural areas have been called a cause for concern by the CDC.  Despite this, opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment remains scarce in rural spaces, […]

SUD Industry Has Evolved But Still Has a ‘Lot of White Space’ for Consolidation 

The outpatient substance use disorder (SUD) industry has evolved from a landscape of mom-and-pop businesses to a field dominated by sophisticated providers seeking to provide quality care. While the SUD industry has matured over the last decade, it still faces significant roadblocks like stigma surrounding medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and fragmentation. The splintered SUD market offers […]

It’s Not ‘Magic’: Ending the X-Waiver Alone Unlikely to Fix MAT’s Access Problem

The federal government now allows any appropriately registered prescribers to use buprenorphine to treat patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) after years of loosening restrictions on the drug. Several behavioral health insiders see the move as having clear benefits for the industry. However, the benefit of deregulating buprenorphine may underwhelm in the short-term and even […]

Substance Use Disorder Executive Outlook: Plan for Economic Pressures, Regulatory Turmoil

In 2023, substance use disorder (SUD) executives forecast retaining and recruiting challenges, more modality flexibility, deeper adoption of data and value-based care and shifting regulatory frameworks. Behavioral Health Business reached out to top executives in the substance use disorder space to get their insights on two key questions — What will be the defining market […]

Why More Behavioral Health Operators Opt to Lease Instead of Own

Behavioral health providers largely opt to lease real estate instead of buying it in order to maximize capital going into operations. That’s where investors often say they can get the most return for their investment, and where providers say they can best address patient needs.  This happens to such a degree that the behavioral health […]

Spero Health Picks Up 4 New Outpatient Clinics in First Acquisition

Spero Health has bought fellow outpatient addiction provider My Turning Point in its first acquisition. The new acquisition will give the Brentwood, Tennessee-headquartered provider four new outpatient addiction treatment program locations in Kentucky. This comes as Spero Health continues its ambitious growth plan heading into the final stretch of 2022. Financial terms of the My […]

Building the Foundation of Value-Based Care for Substance Use Disorder is Not Without Hurdles

Inadequate and mismatched business systems and cautious — if not drawn-out — negotiations impede the rapid adoption of value-based care in the substance use disorder (SUD) treatment space. Part of the challenge comes from a lack of consensus in the marketplace about what the high-level practices of value-based care should look like. But even when […]