Withdrawal Scale Use

Date: 12/13/24

Use of Standardized Clinical Scales for Assessing Withdrawal  

Arizona Complete Health’s Behavioral Health Utilization Management (BH UM) team uses standardized clinical scales for assessing withdrawal symptomology and determining the severity of the member’s signs and indications when admitting to detox level of care.

Please ensure the appropriate withdrawal assessment, according to the member’s presentation, is included in your prior authorization request packet.

 Evidenced-based withdrawal scales include:

·        Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS),

·        Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment (CIWA),

·        Clinical Institute Narcotic Assessment (CINA).

This applies to all lines of business, i.e., Medicaid, Medicare, and Marketplace.

For general questions, please reach out to your AzCH Provider Engagement Specialist. If you need your assigned Provider Engagement Specialist’s contact information, please email AzCHProviderEngagement@azcompletehealth.com.