Course Description: SUD counselors regularly navigate dilemmas involving client autonomy, confidentiality, dual relationships, and competing legal obligations — often with no clear right answer. This course reviews the five foundational ethical principles governing SUD practice — justice, autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and fidelity — and applies each to clinical scenarios encountered in treatment settings. The course addresses the 2021 revisions to the NASW Code of Ethics, including self-care as a professional ethical obligation and the shift from cultural competence to cultural humility. It also covers federal disability law as applied to individuals with SUDs and those in recovery, including the DOJs 2022 guidance on ADA protections for individuals taking legally prescribed medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD). A major portion addresses the 2024 Final Rule to 42 CFR Part 2, enforceable February 16, 2026, including updated consent requirements, single-consent TPO authorization, SUD counseling note protections, breach notification obligations, and the practical interaction between Part 2 and HIPAA.
Psychologists, social workers, mental health counselors, drug and alcohol counselors, marriage and family therapists, and other licensed or certified behavioral health professionals can benefit from this course. This course is appropriate for intermediate and advanced-level practitioners who require continuing education for license renewal.
Authors: DiDona copiled from multiple government sources
Learning Objectives: This course will provide professionals with a current review of ethical principles, professional standards, and the federal legal framework governing substance use disorder treatment practice. Specifically, after completing this course the practitioner will:
1. Apply the five core ethical principles to identify and resolve clinical ethical dilemmas encountered in SUD treatment settings.
2. Identify the ADA protections available to individuals with alcohol use disorder, and those in recovery from illegal drug use
3. Distinguish the compliance requirements of the 2024 Final Rule to 42 CFR Part 2
Citation: Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. (2000, revised 2014). Substance abuse treatment for persons with HIV/AIDS (TIP Series, No. 37, HHS Publication No. [SMA] 12-4137). SAMHSA. | DiDona, T. (2026). Ethics for substance use disorder counselors [Course material]. CE-Classes.com. | National Association of Social Workers. (2021). Code of ethics of the National Association of Social Workers. NASW Press. | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration & U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. (2024). Confidentiality of substance use disorder (SUD) patient records: Final rule (89 Fed. Reg. 12,472). https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/02/16/2024-02544 | U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. (2022). The ADA and opioid use disorder: Combating discrimination against people in treatment or recovery. https://www.ada.gov/resources/opioid-use-disorder/
This course is Non Interactive .
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