Medical professionals recommend SBIRT services
The following organizations all have endorsed providing Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) services in general health care settings as a needed and effective public health service:

American Academy of Pediatrics, 2001
American Medical Association, 1999
American Society of Addiction Medicine, 1997
Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 2006
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2003 & 1995
National Quality Forum, 2007
US Preventive Services Task Force, 2004 & 1996

SBIRT research has shown that large numbers of individuals at risk of developing serious alcohol or other drug problems may be identified through primary care screening. Interventions such as SBIRT have been found to:

• Decrease the frequency and severity of drug and alcohol use;

• Reduce the risk of trauma; and

• Increase the percentage of patients who enter specialized substance abuse treatment.

In addition to decreases in substance abuse, screening and brief interventions also have been associated with fewer hospital days and fewer emergency department visits. Cost-benefit analyses and cost-effectiveness analyses have demonstrated net-cost savings from these interventions. A Wisconsin study found that the state saves nearly $1,000 in health care and criminal justice costs for every patient receiving screening and brief intervention services. (Fleming et al., Medical Care, 2000)



Health care professionals can support WIPHL knowing that:
• Having a WIPHL health educator at your clinic means that patients will come much closer to getting the level of preventive services recommended by the US Preventive Services Task Force (services that according to one study would take a physician 7.4 hours a day to deliver)*;

• Screening leads to earlier detection of problem drinking and drug use--and earlier intervention and treatment lead to much better and less expensive outcomes; and

• WIPHL is implementing a systemic change, with support from a federally funded home office, in numerous clinics throughout Wisconsin--changes that are here to stay and will expand to other clinics in coming years.

*Yarnall et al., American Journal of Public Health, 2003


The following steps have been taken, with more to come, to ensure that SBIRT services are sustainable, including:
• DHFS has added screening and intervention to its service continuum;

• Wisconsin Medical Assistance will reimburse for screening and intervention;

• The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services allows Medicaid programs to reimburse for alcohol and drug screening and intervention services;

• The results of an application for new CPT (Current Procedural Terminology) codes will be announced by the American Medical Association in November 2007; and

• Large employers and health insurers, who purchase health care in bulk, are increasingly recognizing the value of SBIRT services for their employees or subscribers. Citizens can encourage health care purchasers to demand that their health care providers consistently administer SBIRT services. Information on the benefits of such services for health care purchasers, providers, and patients appears at www.ensuringsolutions.org.