ALSAM Supports Removing Outdated Regulations on the Prescribing and Use of MOUD

On May 10th, the Alabama Society of Addiction Medicine (ALSAM) sent a letter in support of HB433/SB239 to members of the House Committee on Health. In light of the removal of the federal “X-waiver,” this legislation would repeal a previous state law requiring the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners to adopt rules governing the prescribing and use of buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder (OUD) in nonresidential settings.

In the letter, ALSAM emphasized the need to enhance access to evidence-based addiction treatment throughout the state of Alabama. Last year, the federal government acknowledged this imperative and removed the federal X-waiver for prescribing buprenorphine. As such, ALSAM highlighted the changing circumstances and called for aligning state regulations with federal policy. ALSAM praised HB433/SB239 as a sensible step to remove outdated rules regulating buprenorphine treatment and return these treatment decisions to patients and their clinicians.

Read the letter here.