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History

A Timeline of Events

For nearly a century, the Center of Alcohol & Substance Use Studies has played a pivotal role in addiction education, research, and policy.

Timeline Legend:
  • History of CAS
  • History of the field of addiction

Center of Alcohol Studies renamed Center of Alcohol & Substance Use Studies to reflect its broader mission

Recreational and medicinal marijuana use is fully legalized in 11 states, and mixed in another 28 states

Project Harmony, funded by NIAAA, will allow CAS researchers to use big data strategies to study effectiveness of treatments for PTSD and alcohol and other substance use disorders

NIH launches the HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-term) Initiative, an aggressive, trans-agency effort to speed scientific solutions to stem the national opioid public health crisis

The Estate of Helen E. Chaney provides an endowment to establish a Research Faculty Chair at CAS

CAS Summer School of Addiction Studies celebrates its 75th Anniversary

Opioid over-prescription fuels new heroin epidemic and heroin-related deaths increase >250% in 10 years

CAS Researchers study an innovative relapse prevention technique for women in treatment for alcohol and opioid dependence

CAS Researchers study alcohol and marijuana use in 3 states with different marijuana legalization laws

Recreational marijuana use is legalized in Colorado

Addiction treatment included as essential benefit in the Affordable Care Act

CAS researchers awarded contract to study mechanisms of behavior change initiation as a part of NIAAA's Interdisciplinary Research Consortium

Opioid prescriptions skyrocket as addiction potential is downplayed and pain management is prioritized

CAS researchers awarded a NIDA 'Transdisciplinary Prevention Research Center' grant to study programs for youth at transitional stages of development

Advances in neuroscience methods help refine theories and popular conceptions of addiction

Summer School of Addiction Science

Christopher D. Smithers Foundation endows CAS to broaden its prevention research focus

Medical marijuana is legalized in California

CAS receives a NIAAA training grant to educate a new generation of addiction psychologists

Alcoholism and drug addiction begin to be integrated in treatment and research

CAS researchers awarded a NIAAA center grant to link the treatment of alcoholism to biological and psychological research

Reagan renews the 'War on Drugs'. Drug incarcerations rise sharply

CAS, with support from Johnson & Johnson, created the School Nurse Fellowship Program to help schools deal with alcohol and drug issues

First Lady Nancy Reagan launches “Just Say No”

CAS’ longitudinal study is expanded to other drugs and funded by NIDA and NIAAA for 20 years

‘Diseasing of America: Addiction Treatment Out of Control” by Stanton Peele is published refuting the ‘addiction as a disease’ model

The 'War on Drugs' begins. The DEA is created.

CAS awarded one of the first NIAAA center grants to conduct a longitudinal study on the etiology of alcoholism

National Institutes on Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism (NIAAA) & Drug Abuse (NIDA) created

CAS mission broadens to include illicit drugs

Illicit drug use continues to escalate in the US

Alcoholism as an illness that requires medical treatment gains favor

The Center of Alcohol Studies (CAS) moves to Rutgers Smithers Hall, supported in part by the Christopher D. Smithers Foundation

American Bar & American Medical Associations call for community-based treatment programs

Jellinek publishes "The Disease Concept of Alcoholism"

Private & hospital-based treatment centers open as insurance reimbursements become available

American Medical Association accepts alcoholism as a treatable illness

Christopher D. Smithers foundation focuses on alcoholism prevention and education after founder attends the School of Alcohol Studies

Minnesota first to approve state job position “Counselor on Alcoholism”

‘Center of Alcohol Studies’ is named; Selden Bacon becomes first director

The disease concept of and treatment for alcoholism emerges in US

‘Yale Plan Clinic’: A model for outpatient treatment of alcoholism is created

‘Yale Plan for Business & Industry’: A Model for Employee-Assistant Programs is created

Bill W. (co-founder of AA) teaches at the Summer School (1943-1947)

Marty Mann founds advocacy organization with Jellinek, Haggard, & Bill W. (now: National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence)

Summer School of Alcohol Studies begins. It is the first educational program of its kind

Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol published

Prohibition ends

The Laboratory of Applied Physiology (Yale) publishes a series of papers on physiology & metabolism of alcohol

Alcoholics Anonymous is founded

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