VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2 December 2009

Methamphetamine: The National Summit to Promote Public Health,

Partnerships, and Safety for Critically Affected Populations

Meth Minutes
The National Summit, con-
Inside this issue: vened by SAMHSA and Federal
Partners, was held on Novem-
Did You Know? 1 ber 16-19, 2008 at the Hilton
Washington. The National
Summit utilized a facilitated
action-planning process for
participating states and territo-
Action Team 2 ries to develop action plans
incorporating evidence-based
Highlights
and culturally appropriate prac-
tices and policies to respond to
methamphetamine use among
justice-involved individuals,
Conclusion 8
lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-
gender (LGBT) individuals, and
women.
In addition strategies and ac-
Action Team 9 tion steps integral to the action
plan focused on six domains:
Leaders and
Criminal Justice; HIV/AIDS and
Team Members
Other Sexually Transmitted
Diseases; Mental Health Ser-
vices; Prevention/Public Aware-
ness; Rural; and Treatment,
Aftercare/Recovery Manage-
ment and Support Services.
It is evident in the work being
done in each state and territory
that a real commitment to the
following Summit goals exists:
1. Synthesize local successes,
move states/territories to
action and promote the de-
velopment of national strate-
gies that participants can use
to strengthen and expand
existing efforts back home.
2. Identify culturally and linguis-
tically appropriate and rele-
vant products that reflect
promising areas of research
and evidence-based practices
in prevention, intervention,
treatment and recovery man-
agement in order to assist
communities in their re-
sponse to methamphetamine
use in critically affected
populations.
3. Forge collaborations across
Federal, State, Local and
Tribal government agencies
and with community part-
ners, and establish a mecha-
nism for the creation of col-
laborative plans with all Fed-
eral partners.
Action Teams are designing,
implementing and revising ac-
tion plans that meet the unique
challenges of their communi-
ties. Most team leaders con-
tinue to participate in follow up
conference calls and request
technical assistance.

Did You Know?

 There is a new, more effi-
cient way to make metham-
Special thanks goes out
phetamine being used across
to the members of the the nation, called the “One-
Steering Committee for pot” method or “Shake and
their dedication and Bake” method. This typically
commitment to making can be done using a two liter
this a successful and beverage container. Risks
meaningful initiative. with this method include the
We appreciate your risk of explosion when the
container is in hand, the use
ongoing support!
of other chemicals which
may result in a deadly prod-
uct and the potential for an
increase in trafficking as
meth becomes seen as a cost
efficient commodity.
 Idaho has posted a “Short strong connection to the
Screener” on their website. education system and safe
This tool has been used by and drug free schools fund-
law enforcement and other ing targeting methampheta-
first responders to assist in mine prevention.
identifying individuals for  Minnesota is working with
treatment services related to Dr. Cecil White Hat to create
methamphetamine. a best practices standard for
 Ohio has a division within working with Native Ameri-
can clients.
state government that fo-
cuses solely on cultural com- We have encouraged Action
petence and serves to coor- Team Leaders to interact with
dinate efforts across agen- other state/territory teams and
cies. to that end thought that the
 The American Samoa action following chart might be help-
team work has included a ful to facilitate interactive dis-
cussions. (See table on page 9)
 METH MINUTES Page 2

National Meth Summit Action Team Highlights

Action Teams consistently report that the
National Meth Summit contributed to sys-
tems changes and improvements in the
way in which data is collected or coordi-
nated among agencies, the ways in which
attention is being given to cultural compe-
tency, the ways in which services are deliv-
ered to methamphetamine involved clients
and the systems approach being taken to
support and implement best practices
across the states/territories. Given the
intense, comprehensive nature of the Sum-
mit, Action Teams initially developed multi-
ple strategies for each critical population
across all six domains and across each of
the four topic areas. However, upon
getting back to the home state/territory,
many Action Team members were imme-
diately tasked with legislative and budget
responsibilities that not only required a
significant amount of time and energy
but served to help states whittle down
the Action Plan to a more clearly defined
and realistic list of actionable items.
Most of the Action Teams have come
through the legislative process with a
more defined picture of the available
resources to address methampheta-
mine.
Action Teams continue to engage with
planning and implementation that re-
flects the complexity of three critical
populations, six domains and the four
topic areas. That being said, the chart
below highlights just a few of the excit-
ing initiatives and strategies being im-
plemented as a result of the National
Meth Summit:

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009

State Initiative(s)
American American Samoa’s Meth Team has met approximately quarterly and has several very active members. Highlights include:
Samoa  They have counselors ready to provide counseling services through the Department of Human and Social Services, and a very active
Safe and Drug Free Schools program. The team has conducted outreach and education within health and social service systems, and
they feel there is increased awareness about the breadth and depth of the Methamphetamine problem.
 The team has identified the need to increase coordination with the criminal justice system and is working to recruit new members
from the public defender and police departments. In the Criminal Justice area, the American Samoa team leader has been working
with the Office of the Public Defender, who recently made a media statement about the seriousness of their Methamphetamine
problem and the need to take action.
 In the Prevention/Public Awareness area, the team feels that there is a need for a strong public awareness campaign on the effects
of Methamphetamine. However they expressed concern based on historical experience that the raised "awareness" may actually be
counterproductive, by increasing curiosity about Methamphetamine among those who hadn’t previously thought about it.
American Samoa has worked to ensure counseling services and other targeted help is available for the three special populations. Anecdo-
tal information indicates that the LGBT community in American Samoa has less of a problem with Methamphetamine than it does with
hormone misuse.
American Samoa is particularly interested in working to improve data collection and research for the three critical populations, yet has
experienced barriers for obtaining information. For this reason, the team is interested in the planned webinar for Action Teams on this
topic.
Arizona Arizona continues to actively pursue its state strategic goals related to methamphetamine through an active state-level task force. High-
lights include:
 The Annual Substance Abuse conference as a forum, modeled after the National Meth Summit, with the theme being “Addressing
Substance Abuse in Critical Populations”.
 The Action Team continues to rely heavily on the State Epidemiology Profile, with the 2009 report due out soon, and during the con-
ference over 350 participants were encouraged to expand the data collection capacity of their agency/organization to include data
pertinent to the three critical populations.
 Arizona is striving to increase awareness among prevention, treatment and enforcement for all critical populations, including a focus
on homeless, families and veterans.
 Arizona has a strong focus on working with substance abuse providers to increase data collection efforts for all three critical popula-
tions.
 The Arizona Substance Abuse Partnership Community Advisory Board is conducting a Community Capacity Inventory to assess the
resources available in each county and identify gaps.
 Access to Recovery (ATR) has expanded services beyond the drug court methamphetamine involved clients.
 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2 Page 3

National Meth Summit Action Team Highlights (continued)

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009
State Initiative(s)
Colorado Colorado has a State Meth Task Force which provides oversight to the Action Team and works in conjunction with them to support tasks.
The Action Team has expanded in number of members and scope, to focus on the three critical populations. Highlights include:
 They are in the process of changing the data repository and reporting mechanism at the state level and have created a place holder
to include LGBT data. CO is changing to use a dashboard system to collect and report data. They have a target date in 2010 to make
changes to the LGBT indicators. The goal is to use the dashboard system to create meaningful and relevant reports that address the
core issues overall and specific to all critical populations.
 They are holding a meeting September 9th to focus on substance abuse newborns.
 Providers affiliated with ATR are working with county jails to assess clients prior to their release which will increase the ability for the
client to access services immediately and decrease lag time for services. Colorado has increased screening for treatment services in
the corrections system and in 2010 are hoping that the data systems for criminal justice and behavioral health will be able to com-
municate with each other and expand data collection to track children and families impacted by methamphetamine.
 They are working to schedule LGBT training and to include HIV/AIDS information in the new data system. Colorado is planning to
implement a LGBT Training of Trainers in conjunction with the February 2010 Research Forum. The model will be to have co-trainers
train across the state.
 The mental health and substance abuse systems are merged at the state level, however at the county level implementation varies.
They are deliberating about the possibility that methamphetamine could be the entre into discussions for more comprehensive ser-
vices at the county level. In this time of fiscal responsibility, CO is looking for more effective strategies to spend their prevention and
treatment dollars on in the future.
 All mental health/substance abuse services include a rural component. ATR is specifically addressing needs west of the I-70 corridor.
 Colorado is focused on data collection related to the LGBT population. They will use a legislatively adopted definition of LGBT but
are looking for guidance at the federal level.
 They have a strong focus on Drug Endangered Children with the National Alliance for Drug Endangered Children as a strong partner.
 ATR has largely been successful in CO, with early spending and the program being put on hold, it has a rural focus in conjunction with
the front range cities.
 Currently CO is collecting information about best practices currently happening. They will catalogue the information and dissemi-
nate via an on-line centralized source.

Idaho Idaho continues to focus on the three critical populations across all four topic areas. Highlights include:
 Idaho continues a very active media outreach to increase awareness of the dangers of methamphetamine and the treatment options
available. Recently they have begun to tailor the media campaign to address gang activity and the connection to Mexican gangs.
 Idaho uses a common data and reporting system as of July 09, web information technology. However, they have added a short
screener with 98% reliability that can be used by law enforcement or other first responders. The screening tool has contributed to
the increase in treatment admissions and the decrease in incarceration rates.
 Idaho continues to engage partners to address the criminal justice population and women. They have more challenges related to the
LGBT population and are building relationships in this area, including a representative from the department of health to serve on the
Action Team.
 Idaho has a strong focus on data collection with the new reporting system and they are particularly interested in analyzing data con-
nected to the new short screener.
 The goal in strategizing about cultural competency is to go beyond Spanish language translations.
 Idaho no longer has ATR resources but the program has been sustained using state tax dollars. This actually allows Idaho to enhance
the program because they are no longer restricted by requirements related to the federal funding.
 The long term goal related to best practices is to create a framework for best practices and utilize higher education to assist with
training.
 The strongest prevention intervention has been the investment in the media campaign with significant outreach. The challenge they
face is how to track results of the media campaign and outcomes.
 Within the past year, Idaho has worked with a group of researchers to analyze the mental health system at the state level and in
December of 2009 the behavioral health transformational workgroup will release the preliminary strategic plan.
 Idaho has a strong focus on rural issues and hopes to host the national rural methamphetamine summit in Spring of 2010.
 In FY 2008 substance abuse treatment services were provided to 12,000 and in FY 2009 the numbers are 14,355 with longer treat-
ment plans and more wrap around services. Concurrently there were 1000 fewer inmates in the corrections facilities.
 METH MINUTES Page 4

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009

State Initiative(s)
Indiana Indiana continues to have a strong focus on the criminal justice aspects of methamphetamine challenges. However, they are more fo-
cused on the three critical populations within this context. Highlights include:
 Indiana has seen a sharp increase in the “one-pot” or “shake and bake” method of methamphetamine production resulting in in-
creased incidents of manufacturing.
 They are currently developing and implementing an electronic monitoring system with the capacity to track pseudoephedrine pur-
chases and other related data. Twelve trainings for law enforcement across the state have increased awareness of the “one pot”
method and the upcoming electronic tracking resources.
 Traditional methamphetamine labs remain high in the south central and south western parts of IN.
 Indiana has a strong community coalition infrastructure that allows for increased prevention efforts and increased community
awareness in all 92 counties.
 The treatment focus includes jail-based services and ATR services that serve methamphetamine patients and individuals recently
released from the department of corrections.
 Indiana’s data collection efforts are primarily engaging the criminal justice and law enforcement component. Cultural competence is
not a strong focus but free training is provided to under-resourced law enforcement agencies. There is a significant lack of data re-
lated to the LGBT population which reinforces the idea that they do not have a problem.
 Local community coalitions are focused on data driven implementation of effective programs to meet the needs of the population
and address the issues of best practices – this is an ongoing process.
Iowa The Iowa Action Team meets quarterly in conjunction with the Drug Policy Advisory Council to create and issue a drug control policy to
present to the legislature each year. The following highlights areas of focus:
 The data shows that 80-85% of offenders in the criminal justice system identify alcohol and drug problems and anecdotally the ma-
jority are methamphetamine involved.
 The strongest focus has been increased outreach to HIV counseling and referral sites and on women only (women and children)
treatment facilities. Iowa HIV counseling and referral sites have begun to ask clients about methamphetamine use and collect the
data. This is a change in practice since the Summit and has not resulted in conclusive data at this point.
 Since the Summit an in-patient residential treatment facility has opened in the western part of the state, Council Bluff metropolitan
area but will draw rural clients as well.
 The ATR grant has expanded the ability to provide treatment services by enhancing support for transportation which is especially
critical in rural areas.
 For many years the focus in Iowa has been on co-occurring issues so it is a natural approach to address methamphetamine involved
individuals.
 The criminal justice domain is in transition with a new Director of Corrections that brings a background in addictions treatment.
 The Public Health agency has implemented national award winning jail-based treatment systems in 4 counties which address cultural
competence issues.
 Three communities in the state are targeted to become pilot programs, focusing resources on culturally competent substance abuse
treatment to be inclusive of a recovery oriented systems of care model. Iowa is hopeful that ATR and the new culturally competent
treatment services in three communities will improve access to services for underserved populations.
 The programs funded through Block grant monies are required to be evidence-based but the programs piloted through the Office of
Drug Control Policy can be a little more flexible and often drive more innovative approaches.
Minne- Minnesota continues to be actively engaged in addressing issues related to methamphetamine. The following highlights are just a small
sota focus:
 The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division is working with the Department of Corrections to re-write their Chemical Dependency Treat-
ment Guidelines.
 The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division and State Licensing officials are working with a local LGBT treatment vendor to explore having
both mental illness and chemical dependency services in the same location.
 Dr. Cecil White Hat has created a best practices standard for working with American Indian clients that is being presented at confer-
ences-statewide.
 Minnesota continues to include HIV minimum standards training in all licensed chemical dependency treatment providers.
 Budget constraints have reduced or eliminated many of the actions planned for the three critical populations. However, Minnesota
has been able to fund programs and training related to trauma as well as housing and wrap around services to women addicted to
methamphetamine.
 Methamphetamine has reduced in all areas – treatment admissions are reduced from an all time high of 16% (2005) to 7% in 2008,
clandestine lab arrests have fallen and mortality with cause of death being amphetamine toxicity has also fallen. However metham-
phetamine is the number two drug of choice on a small Reservation south of the Minneapolis/St Paul area according to the Drug and
Alcohol Abuse Normative Evaluation System annual report and contact with law enforcement personnel as well as medical examin-
ers.
 METH MINUTES Page 5

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009

State Initiative(s)
Minne- Minnesota has a very sophisticated system of data collection and analysis and they are willing to make copies of final products available
sota on a request basis, Richard.moldenhauer@state.mn.us. This being said they are not looking to change the system but continue to moni-
Continued tor the trends.
 There is an ongoing effort to address cultural competence with a number of materials available such as guidelines for organizations
and they currently released an RFP for cultural competence in best practices.
 One of the challenges for rural populations continues to be housing and Minnesota has released an RFP for Recovery Community
Organizations.
 In addition, with a focus on increasing access an RFP has been released for co-occurring programs.
 Best practices and evidence-based practices are described in a Providers Outcomes manual and a compliance monitor provides infor-
mation related to best practices in all 87 counties and 11 tribes.
Montana The Action Team is very active with quarterly full day meetings and monthly sub-committee conference calls. Their work includes but is
not limited to the following:
 Montana is currently working to integrate questions regarding methamphetamine and the three critical populations into the Behav-
ioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) with a sample of questions to be added to the survey to be available at the end of Au-
gust 2009.
 The MT Department of Corrections has become an active participant on the Action Team and brings a focus on the LGBT population
within the context of the Prison Rape Elimination Act.
 The Action Team is working to operationalize policies and procedures related to the three critical populations across state agencies.
In particular they are focused on existing policies versus creating new ones. They are integrating all three populations into the Be-
havioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
 Montana has more actively engaged the criminal justice leaders in the discussion across agencies to address the needs of the critical
populations.
 The majority of the state is rural so all initiatives and efforts engage this population.
 As indicated earlier, MT is ready to move ahead with asking additional behavior risk questions in an effort to collect more data and
drive better investment of resources.
 They are working to engage more LGBT specific efforts but recognize gaps exist in cultural competency related to all three popula-
tions.
 A “Best Practices Working Group for the Treatment of Meth” continues to meet and address safety issues for the LGBT population
within the criminal justice system.
Nevada Nevada’s action team is struggling during the current fiscal climate at the state level and is facing the following challenges:
 Significant budget reductions of over 15% with 220 FTE’s eliminated, a reduction in treatment and prevention monies but thus far no
reduction in service provision.
 The Action Team is not meeting because a number of members are no longer in their positions or no longer employed.
 As a state they continue to focus on methamphetamine as it is a concern but the data demonstrates a 21% reduction in admissions
for methamphetamine concurrently with nearly the same 21% decline in enforcement numbers, which has been mirrored by nearly
the same increase in heroin use.
 A bill was defeated in the legislature that was specifically targeting parole and probationers directly accessing treatment programs.
 The criminal justice efforts have been put on hold due to budget restraints but in the future the 2nd phase of the four “best practices”
will include a criminal justice component.
 Prevention dollars allocated to methamphetamine were reduced a million dollars.
Despite challenges they have accomplished the following:
 They have a strong focus on addressing cultural competence issues and are piloting four areas of the state to establish “best prac-
tices” coordinating care between mental health and substance abuse services, 2 rural and 2 urban. These four “best practices” are
similar to a demonstration project, with four areas receiving funding for a comprehensive approach to substance abuse services from
a recovery oriented approach. Currently this effort in four areas is closely tied to mental health efforts as well. They hope that the 4
demonstration projects will create an ease of access to services, reorganizing existing resources to re-distribute services differently
and utilizing partners such as mental health, substance abuse, primary care providers and public health more efficiently. Best prac-
tice efforts are focused on implementation of the media campaign with a strong social norms approach.
 In addition, there was a focus on targeting a percentage of services specifically for women. They are using Substance Abuse Preven-
tion and Treatment Agency funding to increase services for women in the Las Vegas areas. LGBT will be one component of the cul-
tural competence training opportunity to be implemented across the state agency.
 They have a large focus on cultural competence with a training planned for September 9th for approximately 50-60 people.
 In the future they have an interest in LGBT training curricula.
 METH MINUTES Page 6

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009

State Initiative(s)
Nevada Nevada’s action team is struggling during the current fiscal climate at the state level and face the following challenges:
 Significant budget reductions of over 15% with 220 FTE’s eliminated, a reduction in treatment and prevention monies but thus far no
reduction in service provision.
 The Action Team is not meeting because a number of members are no longer in their positions or no longer employed.
 As a state they continue to focus on methamphetamine as it is a concern but the data demonstrates a 21% reduction in admissions
for methamphetamine concurrently with nearly the same 21% decline in enforcement numbers, which has been mirrored by nearly
the same increase in heroin use.
 A bill was defeated in the legislature that was specifically targeting parole and probationers directly accessing treatment programs.
 The criminal justice efforts have been put on hold due to budget restraints but in the future the 2nd phase of the four “best practices”
will include a criminal justice component.
 Prevention dollars allocated to methamphetamine were reduced a million dollars.
Despite challenges they have accomplished the following:
 They have a strong focus on addressing cultural competence issues and are piloting four areas of the state to establish “best prac-
tices” coordinating care between mental health and substance abuse services, 2 rural and 2 urban. These four “best practices” are
similar to a demonstration project, with four areas receiving funding for a comprehensive approach to substance abuse services from
a recovery oriented approach. Currently this effort in four areas is closely tied to mental health efforts as well. They hope that the 4
demonstration projects will create an ease of access to services, reorganizing existing resources to re-distribute services differently
and utilizing partners such as mental health, substance abuse, primary care providers and public health more efficiently. Best prac-
tice efforts are focused on implementation of the media campaign with a strong social norms approach.
 In addition, there was a focus on targeting a percentage of services specifically for women. They are using Substance Abuse Preven-
tion and Treatment Agency funding to increase services for women in the Las Vegas areas. LGBT will be one component of the cul-
tural competence training opportunity to be implemented across the state agency.
 They have a large focus on cultural competence with a training planned for September 9th for approximately 50-60 people.
 In the future they have an interest in LGBT training curricula.
New New Mexico has an active Action Team that continues to “pull together” several initiatives within one state plan. One significant influence
Mexico on all efforts related to substance abuse is that on July 1 the system of services has transitioned from one vendor to another. This has
been the priority, not just for policy makers but for providers and program implementation as well. This new system is allowing NM to
look at epidemiology and implement a more systemic, comprehensive approach as compared to the current “patchwork approach”.
Other highlights include:
 ATR is a strong program in New Mexico. Clovis is the highest methamphetamine site with 25-30 thousand people, 40 churches and
located in the southeast. Since participation in the Summit NM has focused criminal justice efforts on a re-entry program and recov-
ery service provision. The population served with ATR funding is 33% female.
 The Las Lunas treatment and training center continues to expand, the San Juan County jail-based program operates at full capacity
(10 women over 60 days treatment with significant step down aftercare) and a 120 day residential program for mothers and children
serve the population of women.
 NM has begun to attend the Community Prevention and Action Group which is a conglomeration of anyone involved with HIV pre-
vention. This group is serving to inform the Action Team about gaps and areas of need related to the LGBT population.
 There is a strong drug court focus with 75% of methamphetamine users are justice involved persons. In ATR about 50% of referrals
are persons on probation or parole. ATR client targets are 22% methamphetamine involved. The re-entry program is looking at
trying to connect criminal justice system and provider network potentially through a blue print presented by Christy Visher, a leader
in prison re-entry, to be shared at a conference in Dec.
 The challenge with ATR funding is that the demand for substance abuse services far exceeds the capacity of the system and funding
has remained “siloed.” They have a specific effort tied to increase Medicaid funding of co-occurring, including mental health with a
medical system of care. 20% of block grant funding goes to prevention with 2 state funded methamphetamine initiatives in the
northwest Navajo nation and in the southeast rural part of the state.
 Addressing the needs of a rural population is second nature as rural efforts are part of the fabric of the state. ATR has a 50/50 split
between clinical treatment and recovery support with success implementing the matrix model. ATR has enhanced the partnership
approach between providers and recovery support across the state.
 NM is switching to a new state system for collecting data and information. This system will allow the state to have a more direct
connection with the provider and the future data collection process. They will continue to target resources based on epidemiological
data and needs will be demonstrated to drive outcomes. The challenge to collecting GPRA consistent measures relate to LGBT data
in a “safe” environment.
 The Action Team is on the cusp of moving cultural competence beyond ethnicity to include all areas without losing the identity of the
individual.
 ATR is the most promising increase in access to services, with a goal to expand to include the veteran’s population, both returning
vets and national guardsmen.
 The focus in NM is on implementation of best practices but would like to make after-care piece more robust.
 METH MINUTES Page 7

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009

State Initiative(s)
New York The NY Action Team is committed to participate in Statewide forums to share the knowledge and principles learned from the Summit.
There were recently significant changes in the Rockefeller Drug Laws which will immediately expand the current treatment case manage-
ment capacity to ensure access to treatment for individuals with a chemical dependency diagnosis. The Action Team feels that strong
prevention efforts have helped to avert a larger problem with methamphetamine in NY. NY is focused on methamphetamine and related
poly drug use with a goal to be more inclusive of the three critical populations, highlights include:
 A strong emphasis on the LGBT population, particularly gay men in New York City for reasons such as sexual transmission of Hep C is
increasing in gay men who are HIV positive.
 Changes to legislation allows for expansion of treatment services to be focused on releasing offenders and providing treatment as an
alternative. In addition a focus on veterans and funding for treatment for veterans is evident.
 A strong media prevention campaign may have played a role in reducing methamphetamine use in New York City.
 NY is focused on identifying and coordinating existing data sources prior to making any decisions regarding revision of data systems.
Upon collecting the data sources the Action Team will work with other key stakeholders to coordinate a strategic plan.
 They have agreed that a future focus will be on training providers in cultural competency with the potential for a measure that will
demonstrate having achieved competency reliably.
 As indicated above access to services will automatically increase with the change in the existing Rockefeller Drug Laws from a of-
fender status to a treatment client status.

Ohio There are some changing priorities to reflect a focus on opiates but the Action Team remains committed to a focus on methamphetamine.
Highlights include:
 The number of lab seizures has already surpassed the total number for 2008 with 211 as of June 18, 2009. Using 2005 as the year
with the highest number of labs the numbers already reflect an increase and will surpass that.
 Anecdotally Ohio reports that the typical scenario is “the person cooking is the person using” but, they are starting to hear more
reports about the “one pot” method and this may change the dynamic described here.
 ATR continues to be successful and Ohio is interested in expanding matrix training to other treatment providers.
 The focus in Ohio is to incorporate all three critical populations into training activities and professional development for providers at
a Directors Conference.
 Specific to women, they are looking to strengthen data collection and will release a report detailing the “women’s network” of pro-
viders.
 The criminal justice focus is in 7 specific counties with high methamphetamine lab seizures – Summit (Akron), Adams and Scioto
(second highest but with only 100,000 population between both counties), Highland, Portage, Perry and Preble (borders IN). The
predisposition of the system is toward prison and not treatment, if you get caught you will go to prison.
 Much of the state is rural and 6 of the 7 highest methamphetamine counties are rural which drives creative strategies to address the
rural population.
 The Action Team is partnering with the Department of Health to address HIV/AIDS issues.
 Prevention and mental health initiatives are ongoing and working to coordinate training efforts.
 ATR is in four counties, including Akron which is historically the highest for methamphetamine use.
 Currently, data collection efforts are extensive but heavily focused in the criminal justice field. The Action Team is working to expand
data sources.
 Ohio is fortunate to have a Division within the department with the sole responsibility to address cultural competence. They will
work closely with them to ensure training is provided at upcoming Director’s conference.
 State funds for treatment have been reduced 30% resulting in some programs closing but more likely, programs are reducing to
mission critical components.
 There are pieces of best practices happening across the state to include but not be limited to matrix training and implementation,
ATTC training in motivational interviewing, Seeking Shelter or Seeking Safety trauma informed care.

Okla- Oklahoma joins many of the other teams in implementing state-wide systems changes that alter every aspect of addressing the challenges
homa of methamphetamine. Highlights include:
 Focus on criminal justice is driven by the number of persons entering the system who report methamphetamine use has increased
with 5898 offenders entering the system between Nov. 07 and 08 and 1,937 (25%) report methamphetamine as the drug of choice.
 OK has increased outreach to four mental health centers and twenty-two substance abuse providers to increase awareness and edu-
cation related to methamphetamine.
 Continue to focus on identifying and compiling all the data sources prior to formalizing a plan.
 METH MINUTES Page 8

Action Team Highlights – Fall 2009

State Initiative(s)
Okla-  Criminal justice is the overwhelming challenge that requires funding and program resources. However, key Action Team members
homa have individually made an outreach to mental health centers, substance abuse providers and more specifically site visits to all state
Continued run women and children residential services for “coffee and conversation” with the staff to identify needs and provide support.
 The criminal justice focus is also on data with a goal of getting information related to length of methamphetamine use, age of first
use and county (with an expectation that rural will be higher).
 The Crystal Darkness initiative continues but with a focus on rural communities interested in hosting town hall meetings to address
concerns and the impact on communities – 18 will be done in total.
 The focus in the treatment domain will be on professional development and understanding the intensity of methamphetamine and
its impact on individuals, families and communities.
 OK is going to a single payer system which will allow them to more closely collaborate between state agencies to get data and pull it
together. They will use the training days to possibly discuss administrative issues including the three critical populations and how
they relate to data collection.
 They are working to increase access to services through the expansion of drug courts in 54 counties.
 They do have ATR funding with 20% of population served identifying methamphetamine as a drug of choice and 70% of the metham-
phetamine population served by ATR are males.
Texas The TX Action Team has gone through some changes but has remained largely intact. Highlights include:
 One of the strongest areas in TX is the strength of Jane Maxwell’s data report, Substance Abuse Trends in Texas with the June 2009
results just being released. As with other states, Texas is currently switching from the CMBHS system to BHIPS to be rolled out in late
2009-2010, region by region. This will assist with better tracking demographics.
 Keville Ware is doing extensive outreach in Houston with gay males and methamphetamine.
 August 4th hosted a successful Drug Demand Reduction Border Symposium with Methamphetamine as one of the issues discussed.
 Texas continues to have a strong emphasis on three critical populations. Houston has a strong connection to the LGBT population,
particularly the work being done by Keville Ware related to gay men. The criminal justice population has not significantly changed
but remains a priority. The number of methamphetamine users who are women remains high with 55% of the persons seeking
treatment being women in 2008.
 Two strong Action Team members have significant roles in prevention efforts in Texas, including the Partnership for Drug Free Texas
with dedicated legislative funding for methamphetamine prevention education.
 There is a braided system of mental health and substance abuse services in TX with an emphasis on co-occurring disorders. In fact, in
some locations access to mental health services can be more readily available than substance abuse services.
 Action Team member Carey Welebob is focused on collecting more criminal justice related data.
 They are seeing a shift from rural to urban methamphetamine use. Methamphetamine is primarily imported from Mexico but the
“one-pot” method is on the rise and “smurfing:” is a problem.
 The Summit allowed TX to access materials related to cultural competence that they did not know about which has served to in-
crease awareness across the state however they need to increase the general awareness that cultural competence goes beyond
speaking Spanish.
 The system to access services in TX is regulated through the OSAR system and in 2010 an RFP will be offered to increase services
including outreach through the OSAR.

Conclusion
In conjunction with the success that Action
Teams have been celebrating, there are
challenges that serve to remind us of the
importance of engaging key stakeholders,
the importance of identifying and meeting
the needs of addiction-impacted individuals
and families, and the importance of strate-
gically determining and clearly communi-
cating data-driven strategies with measure-
able outcomes.
Budget reductions and unsuccessful legisla-
tive efforts have resulted in a number of  Team Leader has been pulled away to
states reducing FTE’s as well as program- work on other priorities.
matic initiatives. This has also resulted in
 Action Teams are frequently meeting
a limited number of substance abuse
by conference call or e-mail only, as
providers no longer being funded or able
travel has been restricted.
to provide services. Some states have
reduced budgets and are working dili-  Having fewer resources has limited
gently to make sure that service delivery the scope of work that Action Teams
and access to services is not negatively are able to address.
impacted. This has directly impacted
Action Teams in the following ways:
 METH MINUTES Page 9

 Transition among leadership and staff
has resulted in less participation on Ac-
tion Teams, gaps in representation from
all key stakeholders and/or significant
knowledge and institutional history has
been lost.
Action Teams have also expressed a desire
for funding at the federal level to be more
coordinated. Often the approach at the
state level works hard to “braid funding”
and those efforts are curtailed by
“siloed” funding at the federal level that
does not appear to coordinate across
federal agencies. In addition, the very
nature of bringing together directors of
multiple agencies has functioned as the
first step in some states to explore true
collaboration and coordination of ef-
forts as opposed to in name only. With
this shift comes trial and error and pa-
tience is needed as agencies learn to
work together in a different way.

National Meth Summit Action Team Leaders & Team Members

State/Territory Team Leader and team E-mail SAMHSA/SAI Staff
American Samoa Oreta Togafau oreta.togafau@americansamoa.gov Pat Dunn
Arizona Briana Krebich bkreibich@az.gov Colleen Copple
Morgan Hester mhester@az.gov
California Dave Neilsen dneilsen@adp.ca.gov Pat Dunn
Millicent Gomes mgomes@adp.ca.gov
Colorado Janet Wood Janet.wood@state.co.us Beth Mattfeld
Jade Thomas jade@coloradodec.org
District of Columbia Team to Reconvene Ed Craft
Florida Stephenie Colston stephenie_colston@dcf.state.fl.us Kim Dalferes
Guam Don Sabang don.sabang@mail.dmhsa.guam.gov Pat Dunn
Hawaii Karl Espaldon Karl.espaldon@hawaii.gov Jim Copple
Idaho Debbie Field Debbie.Field@odp.idaho.gov Beth Mattfeld
Indiana T. Neil Moore nmoore@cji.in.gov Beth Mattfeld
Sonya Cleveland scleveland@cji.in.gov
Iowa Gary Kendell Gary.kendell@iowa.gov Beth Mattfeld
Minnesota Rick Moldenhauer Richard.moldenhauer@state.mn.us Colleen Copple
Montana Joan Cassidy jcassidy@mt.gov Kim Dalferes
Nevada Harold Cook hcook@mhds.nv.gov Beth Mattfeld
Debra McBride dmcbride@sapta.nv.gov
New Mexico Linda Roebuck linda.roebuck@state.nm.us; Beth Mattfeld
Harrison Kinney Harrison.kinney@state.nm.us
Jay Crowe jay.crowe1@state.nm.us
Marie DiBianco Marie.dibianco@state.nm.us
New York Maria Pasceri mpasceri@nadap.org Beth Mattfeld
Northern Mariana Is- Reyna Malone rmalone@cgcspn.net Pat Dunn
lands Joseph Kevin Villagomez JKVSAIPAN@aol.com
Ohio Joyce Starr JStarr@ada.ohio.gov; De- Beth Mattfeld
Brad DeCamp Camp@ada.ohio.gov
Oklahoma Caletta McPherson cmcpherson@odmhsas.org Beth Mattfeld
Texas Mimi Martinez McKay mimi.mckay@dshs.state.tx.us Beth Mattfeld

For further information, please contact:

Dr. Edwin Craft at (240) 276-1571 or e-mail at ed.craft@samhsa.hhs.gov.