SUD Treatment Priorities

RCPA seeks a system in Pennsylvania that allows providers to remain viable and continue to provide crucial health and human services to individuals and families in need.

A person in a tan suit stands at a wooden podium outdoors, speaking to a group of people near a stone building.

For SUD treatment, that means working to shape an environment in which our members can provide safe, quality services in a system that is less administratively burdensome and where transparency and accountability exist among all stakeholders. 

Our current efforts aim to support the specific SUD priorities we’ve outlined for 2026.
Those efforts include:

  • Department of Drug & Alcohol Programs


  • Legislation to Watch

    SB 716: Updating the Mental Health Procedures Act to Recognize Substance Use Disorder and Alcohol Dependence as Mental Illnesses 

  • Regulatory Reform

    Opioid Treatment Programs: 42 CFR Part 8 Final Rule

Legislation to Watch

SB 716: Updating the Mental Health Procedures Act to Recognize Substance Use Disorder and Alcohol Dependence as Mental Illnesses

Senator Laughlin’s SB 716 intends to amend Pennsylvania’s Mental Health Procedures Act (MHPA) by defining substance use disorder (SUD) as a mental illness, thereby subjecting those with an SUD to the same procedures outlined in MHPA, including an involuntary commitment to a 120-hour hold in a psychiatric hospital, which is commonly referred to as a 302 (Section 302 of MHPA).


RCPA represents nearly 400 licensed substance use disorder (SUD) treatment facilities in Pennsylvania. Our SUD treatment providers represent the entire continuum of SUD treatment, from the outpatient level of care up to hospital-based residential services that employ addiction psychiatrists who work daily with those with SUD and mental illness. Based on input from these varied levels of expertise and real-world experience, published research on the process, and experiences from other states with involuntary commitment laws, RCPA opposes SB 716.

RCPA determined its position after months of discussion and analysis, including:

  • Written input from the entire RCPA SUD treatment provider membership;
  • Extensive conversations and meetings with RCPA members, including SUD and mental health treatment providers, the SUD Steering Committee, and governmental entities;
  • Multiple meetings with staff from key legislators’ offices, including Sen. Laughlin;
  • Multiple meetings with the Shapiro administration; and
  • A review of published research detailing experiences other states have had with involuntary commitment for SUD.