Update: CADC and CAADC credentials not required for facilities that treat substance use disorders

Staff who work at facilities contracted with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network for the treatment of substance use disorders are not required to have a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) or Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CAADC) credential.

This reverses our earlier communications on this topic, including an article in the August 2021 issue of The Record, an article in the September-October 2021 issue of BCN Provider News, a web-DENIS message posted July 1, 2021, and a news item posted in July on our ereferrals.bcbsm.com website.

Reason for the change

After we published the earlier communications, we had additional discussions with our contracted facilities and determined that requiring the CADC or CAADC credential creates hardships for facilities that are trying to recruit staff during the pandemic.

As a result, Blue Cross and BCN are dropping the CADC / CAADC requirement and will defer to the agencies that accredit our contracted facilities (the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, The Joint Commission and similar agencies) to ensure that standards related to the education and credentialing of facility staff are met.

It's our hope that this will provide some relief as the pandemic continues and our contracted facilities continue to face challenges in recruiting clinical staff.

Which providers this applies to

This applies to facilities that treat members who have coverage through these plans:

This applies to facilities that provide and bill for one or more of the following types of treatment for substance use disorders:

Posted: October 2021
Lines of business: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network