The California Society of Addiction Medicine (CSAM) was selected by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to be part of a statewide collaborative project that includes UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, to increase access to addiction treatment, reduce unmet treatment need, and reduce opioid overdose related deaths through the provision of prevention, treatment and recovery activities for opioid use disorder (OUD). As the result of this funding, CSAM is updating its “Guideline for Physicians Working in California Opioid Treatment Programs” last published in 2008. The Guideline Update is to be published by January 2019. Walter Ling, MD and Ernie Vasti, MD are leading this project as a function of the Committee on Opioids. A host of CSAM members are contributing authors on the update. Through its sister organization, the Medical Education and Research Foundation (MERF), CSAM received funding to offer 72 Scholarships/Mentored Learning Experiences (MLEs) to take place at the CSAM Annual Conference, August 29 – Sept 1, 2018, in San Francisco at the San Francisco Hilton Union Square. Applications for these opportunities will be available beginning in March 2018. Ken Saffier, MD, President of the MERF Board of Directors is leading this effort. And, finally CSAM will be producing two webinars on Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) to be offered later this year and in early 2019. In 2017, CSAM sponsored a series of 12 monthly webinars to support the implementation of Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) of opioid use disorders in primary care. The series of webinars was made possible by a grant from the CA Health Care Foundation (CHCF). These two webinars are an extension of that work and are being lead by Jean Marsters, MD Chair of CSAM’s Committee on Education. For more information on this grant, contact CSAM Project Manager Erica Murdock-Waters at: 415-764-4855 or csam.hss@gmail.com  Read more