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Senator urges Medicaid coverage for ear acupuncture as treatment for substance use; state Medicaid cautions on cost
Summary
A Senate hearing on SB 123 heard advocates and recovery providers urge New Hampshire Medicaid to cover five‑point ear acupuncture for substance use disorder; state Medicaid staff said the service is not currently covered and estimated potential costs between $1 million and $5 million depending on uptake.
Sen. Victoria Sullivan, sponsor of Senate Bill 123, told the Senate Health and Human Services Committee that ear acupuncture — a five‑point protocol used in some chemical dependency programs — should be added to the state Medicaid plan as an option for people in recovery from opioid and other substance use disorders.
At a morning hearing, Sullivan said the practice has helped people in Manchester recover and rejoin the workforce, and she introduced several recovery coaches, licensed acupuncturists and peer counselors to describe clinical and programmatic experience with the treatment. “Ear acupuncture can help with cessation of cravings, but it also helps with so many other things that people in treatment are going through,” Sullivan said.
Why it matters: Witnesses said the technique is widely used in some programs as a low‑cost adjunct to treatment and as harm reduction. Supporters described models where acupuncture is offered multiple times per week during intensive treatment and argued that Medicaid coverage would increase access in communities with few volunteer or donated programs.
State Medicaid counsel Rob Berry told the committee New Hampshire Medicaid does not currently cover acupuncture for substance use and that adding a new service would carry a fiscal impact. “We have a rather broad estimate, between $1,000,000 to $5,000,000, but that's really based upon assumptions relative to the uptake,” Berry said, noting his estimate used an assumed 20 visits per year per participant and an uptake assumption drawn from Massachusetts experience.
Multiple licensed acupuncturists and recovery workers from Manchester described volunteer programs and pilot data. Licensed acupuncturist Elizabeth Ropp said trained “Acupuncture Detoxification Specialists” can deliver a five‑point ear protocol and cited small studies and historical program models — including Lincoln Hospital’s long‑running program — as supporting evidence. She told the committee, “When it's well integrated into programs...it's very, very effective.”
Several recovery workers who volunteer or work in detox centers described immediate symptom relief in some clients. A registered nurse and certified detox specialist said she volunteers acupuncture supplies and training hours and that in her experience patients sometimes reduce reliance on comfort medications after a session.
Committee questions focused on administration, credentialing and billing. Berry said Medicaid would require credentialing consistent with the state acupuncture board and that administrative rules currently list acupuncture as a noncovered service and would need updating if the Legislature authorized coverage. He and other speakers agreed that program details — number of visits, whether treatment is provided during detox or as maintenance, provider types and billing codes — would need to be worked out with stakeholders.
No votes were taken at the hearing. Committee members asked supporters and Medicaid staff to provide utilization, credentialing and cost‑effectiveness data for further analysis.
Ending: The committee recessed the hearing after taking testimony and asked parties to provide additional fiscal and utilization data; lawmakers did not take immediate action to add coverage. Supporters urged the committee to explore pilot coverage and said they would supply studies, utilization data and program models for further review.
