OPEN MINDS Introduces Executive Speakers For The 2026 Addiction & SUD Summit, Sponsored By Cantata Health Solutions
GETTYSBURG, PA. (September 19, 2026) — OPEN MINDS will host the full day The 2026 OPEN MINDS Addiction & SUD Summit, sponsored by Cantata Health Solutions, for addiction and substance use disorder treatment executives, taking place Thursday, October 29, 2026, within The 2026 OPEN MINDS Technology & Analytics Institute at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
As overdose deaths decline, addiction and substance use disorder (SUD) treatment executives face continuing challenges related to reimbursement pressures, changing referral pathways, and access to care. The summit will feature executives sharing their experiences and lessons learned in navigating these challenges, expanding treatment access, and developing sustainable service models.
Chaired by Sharon Hicks, MSW, MBA, Senior Associate at OPEN MINDS, the summit will feature the following executive speakers and sessions.
Nicole O’Donnell, Certified Recovery Specialist Director at Penn Medicine’s Center for Addiction Medicine and Policy; Daniel Teixeira da Silva, M.D., Director of the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Harm Reduction at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health; and David Gastfriend, M.D., of CONTINUUM, the ASAM Criteria decision engine, will open the summit with The New Path To Treatment: Navigating The Trends, Policies & Forces Reshaping SUD Care. Ms. O’Donnell leads the CareConnect Warmline, a low-barrier virtual buprenorphine bridge clinic serving Philadelphia and surrounding counties, while Dr. Teixeira da Silva’s division monitors the city’s changing drug supply. Drawing on their experience in treatment access, public health, and clinical decision support, the panel will examine how Philadelphia’s arrest diversion programs, same-day medication policies, access centers, and treatment providers are working together to improve access to care.
Margery L. Stanton, LMHC, President & Chief Operating Officer of BestSelf Behavioral Health; Jennifer Seib, LMHC, Senior Vice President of Strategic Initiatives; and Heidi Ginter, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Comprehensive Treatment Centers, will share their experiences in Closing The Gap: Expanding Access Through Medication For Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD). Their discussion will draw on BestSelf’s opioid treatment access line, which serves all eight Western New York counties, and Comprehensive Treatment Centers’ experience serving approximately 76,000 consumers daily through Acadia Healthcare’s opioid treatment division.
The summit’s Lunch & Learn will feature Christy Winter, LMSW, Chief Product Officer at Cantata Health Solutions, a behavioral health and human services electronic health record firm. In Using Data & Technology To Improve Recovery Outcomes, Ms. Winter will examine where SUD provider organizations lose visibility into recovery outcomes and which technology investments they are prioritizing to strengthen performance measurement and care delivery.
Philip Hutson, Chief Executive Officer of Carlsbad Lifehouse, and Lauren Gomez, Assistant Executive Director, will close the summit with Meeting People Where They Are: The Future Of Accessible, Integrated SUD Care. Drawing on their experience operating a continuum of care from detoxification through outpatient services across three New Mexico communities, they will share how Carlsbad Lifehouse developed virtual and in-person treatment pathways to expand access for consumers living far from a clinic.
“Expanding access to addiction treatment requires more than adding services,” said Monica E. Oss, Chief Executive Officer of OPEN MINDS. “This summit brings together executives who are putting those connections into practice and sharing what they’ve learned about reaching more consumers, improving care, and building sustainable treatment models.”
Access to the Addiction & SUD Summit is included with registration for The 2026 OPEN MINDS Technology & Analytics Institute. OPEN MINDS Circle members who attend all four summit sessions can earn five credit hours toward the Leadership & Management Certificate Program.
The full agenda can be found at technology.openminds.com/agenda.
Registration is now open for the Institute, taking place October 27 to 29, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Registration is included for OPEN MINDS Circle Market Intelligence Service subscribers.
For questions about OPEN MINDS educational programs, sponsorship opportunities, or media inquiries, contact the Executive Education Events team at events@openminds.com or 717-334-1329.
Premier Partners & Exhibitors
OPEN MINDS institutes are made possible by OPEN MINDS premier partners, Alera Health, Cantata Health Solutions, Core Solutions, Netsmart, PayerTrends, Qualifacts, RECADEMY, Spectrum Healthcare, and Trillium Health Resources.
Featured exhibitors for the 2026 Technology & Analytics Institute include 5eAnalytics, Abacus Healthcare, Altruix, Cantata, CCNY Inc., Clinical Notes AI, Continuity Consulting, ContinuumCloud, Core Solutions, Custom Computer Specialists, Eleos Health, FEI Systems, Genoa Healthcare, GrandCare, iCAREManager, MedSuite, MedTrainer, Mend, Netsmart, NextGen, Oddity, PracticeQ, Proven Software, Qualifacts, Radicle Health, Sigmund Software, SimiTree, Soulside AI, Streamline Healthcare, The BI Collaborative, Therap Services, Triad, and VersaBadge.
About OPEN MINDS
OPEN MINDS is a national market intelligence, management consulting, and marketing services firm specializing exclusively in the high-needs consumer market: mental health, addiction treatment, cognitive disabilities, chronic health conditions, elder services, health-related social needs, and adjacent markets within the health and human service field. The OPEN MINDS mission is to provide payers, service provider organizations, pharmaceutical, technology, and scientific firms that serve these consumers with the market and management knowledge needed to improve their organizational efficiency and effectiveness. Learn more at openminds.com.