2026 Legislative Session: Bills and Legislation Supported by RICARES
RICARES is an advocacy organization that supports legislation that could improve the lives of individuals in recovery and the organizations that support them. Recovery is more than just how we choose to treat our mental health and substance use disorders, but about creating a balanced and meaningful life.
Whether it’s through housing, transportation, education, food, or community – these resources together make up what we call “recovery capital” which helps individuals in recovery have access to and feel better equipped to handle life’s challenges and sustain long-term recovery.
Benefit Determination and Utilization Review Act
“This act would prohibit health insurers from requiring or conducting a review for prescription medicine that is used in the treatment of alcohol or opioid use disorder, that contains Methadone, Buprenorphine, or Naltrexone or that was approved for the mitigation of opioid withdrawal symptoms.”
Withdrawals for alcohol and opioid use disorders can be extremely tumultuous for many who need a life-saving medication. Stigma, regulatory barriers, and insurance restrictions can deter people from seeking care, adhering to care, and/or entering into recovery services, even when they are motivated to ask for help. Bill H7187 would begin to resolve these barriers to care.
The Rhode Island Clean Slate Act
“This act would authorize the automatic expungement of eligible conviction records by operation of law, initiated and completed by state agencies through electronic processes established within the judicial system.”
These initiatives are built on second chances and the acknowledgement that people can grow and change. The bill isn’t about erasing the past, but instead about ensuring people who have completed their sentence and remained crime-free are not permanently held back by their past. People will have the opportunity to contribute to their community, have a fair opportunity to work, get an education, and live a self-directed life.
988 Act
We are also supporting 988 Suicide and Crisis Line in their quest to secure a long-term funding bill in Rhode Island. 988 saves lives every single day and provides a critical real time response to our communities.
“This act would establish the 988 lifeline as part of a core state behavioral health crisis services system, to be administered by the director of the department of behavioral healthcare, developmental disabilities and hospitals. The systems would include establishing and administering a 988 lifeline for suicide prevention and behavioral health crisis response, and expanding the use of the 911 and first responder surcharges to include the 988 lifeline fee, on subscribers of commercial landline telephone, mobile telephone and/or IP-enable voice services.”
988 is currently an unfunded federal mandate. Rhode Island boasts one of the best in-state answer rates in the country, and in order to ensure this critical, life-saving service is there for those who need it, it must be fully funded each year. This bill would direct monies already established 911 and first responder surcharges on mobile phones to include the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This legislation does not enact any new taxes or fees as the 911 and first responder fees are currently in place and the state is already collecting monies for Rhode Island’s first responder needs including 911.
Homeless Bill of Rights
“This act would establish a committee to make recommendations to the Rhode Island Housing Resources Commission for their consideration, in preparation of the state’s plan for housing relating to the operation of homeless shelters.”
Access to a safe and stable place to live is one of the four major dimensions of recovery identified by SAMHSA. It can eliminate chaos, and allow individuals to focus on their health, treatment, and long-term recovery. When people with lived experience and expert voice can come to the table to inform key decisions to make those environments safer, more accommodating, and more representative of the communities they serve, the safer the community can feel accessing the service on their path to recovery.
Fire Code Protections for Recovery Residences in Rhode Island
Supported & sponsored by Senator Jake Bissaillon & Rep. June Speakman.
Recovery residence households operate as the functional equivalent of natural families, i.e. as single family households and must be treated as such. The Rhode Island State Fire Code interprets recovery housing is congregate living rather than as a family household. If recovery homes were to be zoned as congregate living, this would require extensive and unnecessary fire code requirements and updates to already certified and inspected homes. It would also turn recovery homes into medical/mental health facilities rather than maintaining the home-like atmosphere they provide while guiding people through the early stages of their recovery. Institutionalizing another vital resource for people is not a way to encourage a pathway to recovery. Rather, it creates yet another barrier.
The current Rhode Island State Fire Code interpretation goes against the Federal Fair Housing Act which prohibits housing discrimination based on disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) states that people recovering from alcohol or drug addiction are considered to have a disability. Additionally, RI General Law H7382 defines NARR certified recovery houses as a household and is exempt from maximum occupancy definitions under a household. According to Federal Fair Housing Law, cities cannot impose zoning or land-use restrictions that treat recovery residences differently from other residential living.