Addiction Workforce Gaps: Combining Federal Resources and Academic Addiction Medicine to Promote Best Practices in Addiction Care

The increasing substance use problem and opioid epidemic in the United States requires a quality workforce trained in best practices to adequately treat the millions of Americans requiring treatment. A strong addiction specialty infrastructure is essential to achieving this. With behavioral health workforce shortages across many professions serving substance use disorder (SUD), ONDCP continues to support the expansion of this essential element of the workforce. The growing acceptance of the medical model of addiction represents a sea change in the nation’s approach, but potential benefits will be realized only if health systems adapt and align themselves with rapid scientific advances. The new subspecialty of addiction medicine (ADM) is at the nexus of these developments, producing clinical experts, educators, and change agents who translate research into practice and promote further diffusion across medicine and the health professions. A national network of one-year fellowship programs is now operating under a standardized accreditation system to train physicians of all primary specialties in preparation for board certification in ADM.

This session will show participants the need and opportunity for growing the addiction workforce. A major expansion is under way via the historic Addiction Medicine Fellowship grant program administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration. Launched in 2020, the $20 million per year program promises to produce several hundred new addiction specialists over five years. Nevertheless, the need for additional addiction medicine physicians remains great. The American College of Academic Addiction Medicine (ACAAM) is leading the effort, with initiatives that include a national didactic program based on emerging science.