Under the terms of a final rule published on May 29, 2016, people with Medicaid or Children’s Health Insurance Program coverage will benefit from the parity requirements that apply to many insurance plans and will be able to receive coverage that is no more restrictive than the coverage for medical and surgical conditions.

President Obama proposed expanding access to treatment, establishing a task force, strengthening access to substance use services for people enrolled in Medicaid, and other actions to combat the opioid epidemic.

Burbank, California city officials explained to residents that state and federal regulations limit their ability to prevent or regulate sober-living homes. In 2015, the city of Newport Beach, California paid a $5.25 million settlement after a legal battle involving group homes.

A Patterson hospital’s emergency room aims to treat most patients without opioids in order to curb addiction.

A new law in Massachusetts places limits on opiate prescriptions, improves training guidelines for medical professions who prescribe opioids, and institutes other measures to fight the opioid epidemic.