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March 16, 2025 | Controlled Substances, Drug Courts, Fact Sheets, Harm Reduction, Peer Support and Recoery Services, Public Health, Public Safety, Recovery, Treatments

In this fact sheet the Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association (LAPPA) details how opioid settlement proceeds are being disbursed to state and local governments, how those governments are choosing to spend those funds, and the obstacles that can prevent these funds from helping those who have been affected by the opioid epidemic....

March 5, 2025 | Controlled Substances, Fact Sheets, Fentanyl, Harm Reduction, Public Safety, Synthetic Drugs

In this fact sheet the Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association (LAPPA) provides an overview of the sudden increase in the presence of BTMPS in the illicit drug supply and its rapid proliferation across the country, which has left drug policy experts and harm reduction specialists puzzled as to why it is in the supply and how it will affect the individuals consuming it....

March 5, 2025 | News Bites

Each issue of News Bites will highlight unique news articles from around the United States in the areas of public health and safety, substance use disorders, and the criminal justice system. This newsletter will feature stories that you may have missed but are important to the field....

February 13, 2025 | Case Law Monitor

Case Law Monitor is the bimonthly case law newsletter of the Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association (LAPPA). Each issue will highlight unique cases from around the United States in the areas of public health and safety, substance use disorders, and the criminal justice system. ...

January 30, 2025 | Controlled Substances, First Responders, Legal & Legislative Research, Naloxone, Opioid Antagonists, Opioid Antagonists, Opioids, Overdose Reversal Agent, Public Health, Public Safety, Substance Misuse

In an effort to save lives, states have implemented laws to make it easier for first responders and the general public to obtain overdose reversal agents, such as naloxone. Additionally, to encourage people to assist an individual who is or may be suffering an overdose, the majority of states also enacted laws which protect laypeople who administer overdose reversal agents, in good faith, in an emergency from civil and/or criminal liability. The Legislative Analysis and Public Policy Association (LAPPA) undertook an extensive research project to determine the current status of overdose reversal agent access laws throughout the United States, including the District of Columbia and all U.S. territories. As of January 2025, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have some form of an overdose reversal agent access law....

January 16, 2025 | News Bites

Each issue of News Bites will highlight unique news articles from around the United States in the areas of public health and safety, substance use disorders, and the criminal justice system. This newsletter will feature stories that you may have missed but are important to the field....

January 6, 2025 | Controlled Substances, Insurance, Model Laws, Public Health, Recovery, Substance Misuse, Treatments

The Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Act aims to empower effective enforcement of mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) parity standards at the state level. This model legislation requires: (1) health benefit plans to provide mental health and SUD benefits on terms no more restrictive than those for medical/surgical benefits; and (2) health insurers to demonstrate compliance with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act for all state-regulated health benefit plans subject to the parameters of this legislation. The overarching purpose of this Act is to save lives and improve health and quality of life by expanding access to mental health and SUD treatment....

December 19, 2024 | Legal & Legislative Research

Many states have enacted involuntary commitment laws for those suffering from alcoholism and/or substance use disorders (SUDs). In order to protect an individual’s civil rights, each state ensures that the committed person receives due process by providing the person the right to an attorney during the commitment process. This summary highlights provisions of of state involuntary commitment laws....