Lighthouse Community Relations Manager Attends Key Statewide Advocacy Day

Anaheim, California - Tamara Jimenez, CADC II, ICADC, Community Relations Manager for Anaheim Lighthouse Treatment Center attended the 9th Annual Leadership Conference of the California Consortium of Addiction Programs and Professionals (CCAPP) on April 18th. CCAPP is the largest statewide consortium of community-based for-profit and non-profit substance use disorder treatment agencies and addiction-focused professionals in California. Each year, their legislative training and lobby day draws hundreds of attendees to Sacramento to advocate for treatment and recovery.

“It was an exciting and empowering event,” said Jimenez. “To see hundreds of passionate people descending on the Capitol to support what we do to save lives was inspiring.”

The legislative guide provided to all attendees states that CCAPP members are the “boots on the ground” when it comes to reducing deaths attributed to substance use disorders. For over 50 years, members have been pioneers, innovators, frontline workers, and advocates for quality treatment in California.

The conference included topics such as Harm Reduction, Ethics, and the Introduction of ATLAS: Addiction Treatment Locator. There were also presentations by the Department of Health Care Access & Information and the Department of Health Care Services.

The highlight of the conference was the Capitol Lobby Day on which members gathered on buses and excitedly headed over to meet with their legislative representatives. This was where the “boots on the ground" happened and Tamara’s favorite part of the conference. Members discussed supporting the following bills to improve access to addiction treatment: AB 1055 (Bains)-Counselor Licensure and AB 1477(Quirk-Silva)-Alcohol & Drug Treatment Programs: Licensing & Certification Fee Freeze. They also discussed supporting the following bill to reduce overdose deaths: SB 10 (Cortese)-Pupil Health: Opioid Overdose Prevention Treatment. To ensure consensual quality treatment, members shared their opposition to AB 1360 (McCarty) Hope California: Secured Residential Treatment Pilot Program (locked treatment) and SB 43 (Eggman) Behavioral Health which expands the definition of gravely disabled to include people with chronic addiction. In discussing budget items to keep their doors open, the support of using Prop 63 funds for addiction treatment was also stressed.

"Collaboration with every aspect of the community is essential if we want to change the way society addresses the illness of addiction,” said Jimenez. “Without conversations and real interaction with each other, not much will change. Our legislators are here to make changes and we can influence those changes by building relationships, providing solid education on substance use disorder related topics, and being available to be their experts."

To see information about CCAPP’s upcoming events, visit: ccappconferences.com