.jpg "Joseph Liberto, MD photo")
VA National Mental Health Director, Substance Use Disorders
VA Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Cockeysville, Maryland
Dr. Liberto comes to VA Central Office having served over 30 years at the VA Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS), occupying several leadership positions in the areas of clinical care delivery, administration, education and research. His past roles include Clinical Manager Substance Abuse Treatment Program, VISN 5 SUD Point of Contact, Clinical Core Director of the VA Capitol Network Mental Illness Research Education Clinical Center (MIRECC), Director of the Mental Health Clinical Center, and Associate Chief of Staff for Education and Academic Affairs. He has also held past positions as the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program Director and the Associate Director of Graduate and Post-Graduate Education for the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Department of Psychiatry.
Dr. Liberto has demonstrated commitment to improving VA substance use disorder (SUD) assessment and treatment nationally, having served as a member of several VA Task Forces for the development of treatment guidelines related to substance use disorders including being the co-Chairman of the workgroup that led to the updates of the VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Substance Use Disorders in 2009 and 2021.
On a broader national level, he has worked with several federal, state and private agencies/groups including SAMHSA/CSAT, NIDA, the State of Maryland and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) to support evidence-based care of patients with substance use disorders. He is also a Past President of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry and was a past member of the American Medical Association (AMA) Opioid Task Force.