Screening, Assessment, Brief Interventions and Referral to Treatment (SABIRT) Resources

Providers who may offer these services within their scope of practice include but are not limited to physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives, licensed midwives, licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional clinical counselors, psychologists, and licensed marriage and family therapists. In providing SABIRT services, CalOptima Health complies with all applicable laws and regulations relating to the privacy of substance use disorder (SUD) records, as well as state law concerning the right of minors over 12 years of age to consent to treatment, including, without limitation, Title 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 2.1 et seq., 42 CFR Section 2.14, and Family Code Section 6929.

When a screening is positive, providers should conduct a brief assessment. Brief misuse counseling is offered when unhealthy alcohol or unhealthy substance use is detected. Appropriate referrals for additional evaluation and treatment, including medications for addiction treatment, is offered to members whose brief assessment demonstrates probable alcohol use disorder or SUD. Unhealthy alcohol and drug use screenings must be conducted using validated screening tools, links to which can be found in the Screening Instruments section below. Resources for counseling are included in the Trainings, Articles and Brochures sections below. For further information regarding SABIRT, refer to All Plan Letter 21-014: Alcohol and Drug Screening, Assessment, Brief Interventions and Referral to Treatment or contact CalOptima Health’s Behavioral Integration department at behavioralhealth@caloptima.org.