Tom Coderre is the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). With decades of public, private, and non-profit service, Mr. Coderre’s career has been significantly influenced by his personal journey and a philosophy that acknowledges the essential role peer recovery support services play in helping people with mental and substance use disorders rebuild their lives.
In his role, Mr. Coderre oversees substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery services, the national policy laboratory, intergovernmental and public affairs, agency operations, as well as budget, financial management, and program priority alignment. In addition, he leads the agency’s strategic overdose prevention priority work which has resulted in lifesaving programs and innovative new policies which are having a major impact on the addiction crisis.
Mr. Coderre has served in several leadership roles at SAMHSA. He was the Region One Administrator (New England) and was the first person in recovery to lead SAMHSA as Acting Assistant Secretary. While Senior Advisor and Chief of Staff at SAMHSA, Mr. Coderre led the team that produced Facing Addiction in America: The Surgeon General’s Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health. He built strong relationships with Capitol Hill and the behavioral health stakeholder community and worked on the 21st Century Cures Act, which reauthorized SAMHSA, contained important mental health reform provisions, and included a $1 billion expansion for treatment to stem the opioid crisis. He represented SAMHSA at the White House and other HHS offices and operating divisions. He took part in many cross-agency partnerships such as the Behavioral Health Coordinating Council. Mr. Coderre was the Federal Liaison to Unite to Face Addiction, the first rally for addiction treatment, recovery, and policy change, which attracted tens of thousands to the National Mall.
As Senior Advisor to the Rhode Island Governor, Mr. Coderre co-chaired a task force that coordinated a multi-layered strategy to address the overdose crisis. Under his guidance, the state built more treatment capacity, reduced prescribing, scaled prevention efforts, expanded resources for recovery support services, and broadened access to medication-assisted treatment and naloxone. He helped increase street-based outreach, community support, and linkages between critical services. Mr. Coderre worked on mental health policy and helped draft an Executive Order to improve access to treatment by enforcing parity laws. He served as acting Director of the Department of Behavioral Health, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals. Mr. Coderre’s legacy includes establishing the Governor’s Recovery-Friendly Workplace Initiative to change workplace culture and encourage a healthy and safe environment where employers, employees, and communities can collaborate to create positive change and eliminate barriers for those impacted by addiction. He also worked with the State Police to establish the Hope Initiative, the first statewide program that engages law enforcement personnel in a proactive outreach strategy to combat the opioid overdose crisis.
Mr. Coderre was a member of the Rhode Island Senate and later Chief of Staff to the Senate President. Mr. Coderre is the former National Field Director of Faces & Voices of Recovery and appeared in the documentary film The Anonymous People. He has been recognized on numerous occasions for his dedication and advocacy efforts. Mr. Coderre is a graduate of both the Community College of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College.