Cedar Recovery selected by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to participate in ViT initiative

NASHVILLE, Tenn., April 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- (www.cedarrecovery.com) -- Cedar Recovery, LLC, a leading provider of outpatient addiction treatment in Tennessee, is pleased to announce its selection by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to be a participant in the Value in Opioid Use Disorder Treatment Demonstration (ViT) initiative.  Cedar is 1 of 61 total participants selected from applicants across the country.  The initiative is a four (4) year demonstration program designed to increase access to opioid use disorder treatment services, improve physical and mental health outcomes, and to the extent possible, reduce Medicare program expenditures for applicable beneficiaries.¹    

Joe Bond, Chief Executive Officer of Cedar Recovery, stated, "We are excited for this opportunity and honored to be selected by CMS to participate in this program. Our mission is to 'solve the opioid epidemic by providing addiction treatment that works' in the communities we serve.  This initiative will allow our medical providers and therapists to offer more services to Medicare Part B beneficiaries who are suffering from opioid use disorder."

CMS will evaluate several quality indicators as part of this demonstration: Retention in treatment, reduction in Emergency Department (ED) utilization, Use of Pharmacotherapy for Opioid Use Disorder, Follow-up after an ED visit for alcohol and other substance use or dependence, and Initiation and Engagement of Alcohol and Other Drug Dependence Treatment. 

Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) for opioid and/or alcohol use disorder(s) combines FDA approved medication(s) such as Buprenorphine (commonly known by its trade name as Suboxone) or Naltrexone with counseling and case management services. "This program is a valuable step in continuing to reduce stigma surrounding addiction and MAT as a treatment.  I have treated hundreds of patients over the last ten years and MAT is the most effective modality I have seen.  Now, we get to prove it really works," said Dr. Stephen Loyd, Chief Medical Officer of Cedar Recovery and former "Opioid Czar" for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services. 

"I am excited to see the ViT Program and Medicare emphasize the value of counseling, peer support, contingency management, and recovery support services in MAT treatment.  For all the patients I have treated, these services have been highly efficacious to an individual's personal recovery," stated Trent Hughes, LPC-MHSP, Chief Clinical Officer of Cedar Recovery. 

With locations in Mount Juliet, Lebanon, Columbia, and Shelbyville, Cedar Recovery provides high-quality care for the treatment of substance use disorders and is actively accepting new patients at all locations.  Patients can even connect with a doctor and counselor via telemedicine regardless of their location in Tennessee.   

See more information about the CMS ViT Program by visiting innovation.cms.gov/innovation-models/value-in-treatment-demonstration.

Contact:
Paul Trivette
(423) 914-1518
[email protected]  

1 RFA Value in Treatment (cms.gov) 

SOURCE Cedar Recovery