Author: A. Ant, CADC-II, Licensing & Accreditation Expert
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal, regulatory, or licensing advice. Requirements change frequently. Consult qualified professionals for guidance specific to your situation.
Delaware’s SUD licensing rule does provide a way back after a suspension or revocation, and how soon it opens depends on the program’s record. Under §4.14.1 of 16 Del. Admin. Code 6001, a licensee with no earlier suspension or revocation may, “at any time after the suspension or revocation determination is final,” ask for a hearing to show the problems “have been corrected and that the license should be reinstated.” A program that has been suspended or revoked before has to wait. Section 4.14.2 says “No licensee who has previously had a license suspended or revoked under these rules may request a hearing to reinstate the license prior to one year after the determination becomes final.” In both cases the hearing “shall not operate to stay or supersede” the suspension or revocation (§4.14.4). So the realistic goal for most programs is never reaching that point, and this guide spends most of its length on the steps before it. The licenses discussed here are the ones the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAMH) issues to SUD programs, with a short section at the end on psychiatric hospitals.
A second complication is timing. Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 161 (85 Del. Laws c. 461), a new behavioral health statute signed on August 31, 2026, replaces the enforcement process in Chapter 22 with a new one in 16 Del. C. Chapter 56. Act § 12 ties their start to whichever comes first, August 31, 2028 or a Register notice from the DSAMH Director that final regulations have been adopted. Until then, our reading is that 6001’s process is the one DSAMH applies, and the comparison table further down shows what changes after that.
How a DSAMH Finding Starts
The steps in this section are taken from 6001 Section 4 and DSAMH’s provisional-license policy, DSAMH020.
“A program is subject to review, which may include onsite inspection, with or without notice, by the Division” (6001 §4.9.1). After a review DSAMH issues a Survey Summary Report, and the program owes a corrective action plan within 10 working days. New programs live under tighter terms. DSAMH020 (revised October 29, 2025) gives a New Provisional license 180 days, puts a compliance audit inside that window, reports the result within 10 business days and expects an SUD program’s corrective action plan within 10 days.
6001 §4.12.1 lists the grounds for denial, suspension or revocation. Among them are giving false information, running a service the license doesn’t list, violating Chapter 22 or the regulations, failing to carry out a corrective action plan, signs of insolvency such as bankruptcy or eviction, and leaving a safety or sanitation violation uncorrected. Nothing we read in 6001 sets a fine for any of these. What DSAMH has instead is control of the license itself: denial, suspension, revocation, and the shorter terms §4.8.1 allows.
Notice, Hearing and the Secretary’s Decision
DSAMH’s first formal step is a Notice of Intended Action, delivered “by certified mail, return receipt requested” (§4.13.1). You then have ten days. “Within ten (10) days after receipt of the ‘Notice of Intended Action,’ an applicant or licensee may request a hearing” (§4.13.2), and DSAMH sends a Notice of Hearing within 15 days of the request (§4.13.3). After the hearing, “The Secretary of the Department shall make a determination” (§4.13.6). DSAMH020 adds that notice of a revocation, suspension or denial goes out at least 30 days before it takes effect.
Ten days is short, and it runs from receipt of a certified letter. We’d have someone check the program’s registered mailing address daily and send any Notice of Intended Action to counsel the day it lands. A waiver request is a separate track: 6001 §4.15 lets DSAMH waive a standard unless that “would result in an activity or condition that would endanger” client safety, and a denied waiver can be appealed through the same §4.13 hearing process.
Provisional and Temporary Licenses Run Out on a Fixed Date
For a new program, the risk usually isn’t revocation. It is running out of provisional time. Under DSAMH020 a provisional license or certification has “a maximum lifespan of 270 days,” the 180-day term plus one 90-day extension. If full compliance hasn’t come by then, the most DSAMH offers is a single temporary license, 90 days at the longest, for planning the closure, and temporary licenses are “not renewable and cannot be extended.” 6001 §4.8.1 says the same about a temporary license from the other direction: it “shall expire automatically without notice or hearing.” In our reading that last clause matters most, because it means the hearing rights in §4.13 don’t attach when a temporary license simply ends.
Losing Deemed Status Is Its Own Setback
Accredited programs can hold deemed status under 6001 Part IV, which supports a two-year license. DSAMH “can revoke Deemed Status standing at any time” under §17.4, §18.4 and §19.4, including when accreditation is lost, after a sentinel event (Joint Commission) or significant event (CARF), when the program reports late, or when a DSAMH survey finds noncompliance. “Once revoked, a program must wait one (1) year before reapplying for Deemed Status. DSAMH must conduct a site review before restoring Deemed Status” (§17.4.2). DSAMH’s License Frequency Schedule, DSAMH058, says the same: “The Division must conduct an inspection before restoring deemed status.”
Late reporting is the trap here. Deemed programs owe DSAMH a report within 24 hours of a sentinel event, a CARF significant event or a COA hazardous situation, and within 24 hours of the first day of an unannounced accreditor visit. In our reading, a program that loses deemed status is measured against the full 6001 standards again and loses its route to the two-year term, so one missed deadline can cost a year.
Renewal, Lapse and Changes of Ownership
A full license runs up to two years with deemed status or substantial compliance, and up to one year otherwise (6001 §4.8.1). The renewal application goes in “at least ninety (90)” days before expiration, “but not more than one hundred and twenty (120), days” before (§4.4.2), and DSAMH “may issue a single renewal of a license, for one (1) year, without an onsite inspection” (§4.8.2). We didn’t find a late-renewal or grace provision in the 6001 text we read. Our reading is that a license that expires before renewal leaves the program applying as new, with a $15 application fee, the Provider Enrollment meeting and a new provisional term.
Licenses “are not transferable” (§4.10.1). A change of name, ownership or premises needs 30 days’ written notice, within 15 days DSAMH tells you whether the change calls for a new application, and “Any person or entity acquiring a licensed substance use program shall apply for a new license” (§4.10.4). A program that intends to close gives DSAMH 60 days’ notice and its clients 30. DSAMH posts a change-of-ownership responsibilities document on its Provider Policies and Resources page, and questions go to DHSS_DSAMH_ProviderEnrollment@delaware.gov.
Applying Again After a Revocation
Two waiting periods can apply. For a program with an earlier suspension or revocation on its record, the §4.14.2 reinstatement hearing can’t be requested until a year after the determination becomes final. Separately, DSAMH020 lets a program that lost its first license or certification reapply “with a plan for addressing deficits,” and adds that “There is a 1-year moratorium before programs can reapply.” Once Chapter 56 is implemented, § 5613 will let DSAMH refuse a license outright where “The Division previously revoked the provider organization’s license.” A program coming back after a revocation should expect its old file to be the first thing DSAMH reads.
How Enforcement Changes Under Chapter 56
The right-hand column quotes or summarizes the enacted Chapter 56 text on the Delaware Code site. Those sections take effect on the Act § 12 timetable, not today.
| Step | Today (6001, Chapter 22 rules) | Once Chapter 56 is implemented |
|---|---|---|
| Notice before action | Notice of Intended Action by certified mail (§4.13.1). DSAMH020 sets at least 30 days before the effective date | Written notice “at least 10 days before taking disciplinary action” (§ 5623) |
| Hearing request | Within 10 days after receipt (§4.13.2) | “no more than 10 days after the provider organization receives notice” (§ 5623) |
| Hearing notice | Within 15 days of the request (§4.13.3) | “at least 20 days before the hearing” (§ 5623) |
| Who hears it | The Secretary makes the determination (§4.13.6) | A hearing officer the Secretary appoints, and “A provider organization has the burden of proof” (§ 5624) |
| Written decision | No deadline in the text we read | “no more than 30 days after the hearing” (§ 5625) |
| Court review | Not addressed in the 6001 text we read | Superior Court petition within 30 days of the final order, on the record, “without a trial de novo” (§ 5626) |
| Money penalties | None in the 6001 text we read | Up to $10,000 per violation plus costs (§ 5606) |
| Other sanctions | Denial, suspension, revocation | Also monitoring at the provider’s expense, suspended admissions and emergency transfer of program management (§ 5606). Emergency action “is effective immediately” (§ 5622) |
| Closing | 60 days’ notice to DSAMH, 30 to clients (§4.10) | 90 days’ notice before an interruption in services or closure (§ 5607) |
Chapter 56 also turns some failures into crimes. Under § 5603, unlicensed treatment that recklessly injures someone is a class F felony, and intentionally failing to report a critical incident is a class A misdemeanor with a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation under § 5644. Retaliating against someone who reports carries a fine of up to $25,000.
Psychiatric Hospitals Follow Chapter 10
A psychiatric hospital in Delaware is licensed as a hospital under 16 Del. C. Chapter 10, not by DSAMH. A hospital facing action gets a written statement of “the particular reasons” under § 1006, can ask for “a prompt and fair hearing before the Department,” and has 30 days to take the decision to Superior Court. Section 1007 sets a fine of “not more than $5,000 for the first offense and not more than $10,000 for each subsequent offense” for running an unlicensed hospital, along with civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation. The licensing route for those facilities is in Delaware Mental Health Inpatient Licensing.
Putting Together a Response DSAMH Will Credit
In our experience a corrective action plan works when a reviewer can test it. For each finding, name the person who owns it, attach the revised policy, show the training roster with dates, and include a short audit, say ten charts or two weeks of logs, showing the fix holding. The 10-working-day deadline doesn’t leave room to build all of that from scratch, so a program that already audits itself monthly answers faster and better. For the front-end requirements a returning program has to meet again, see Delaware Drug and Alcohol Inpatient Treatment Licensing, Delaware Drug and Alcohol Outpatient Treatment Licensing and the overview at Delaware Behavioral Health Licensing.
Frequently Asked Questions
How soon can a Delaware SUD program ask to have a revoked license reinstated?
It depends on the program’s history. Under 6001 §4.14.1, after a first suspension or revocation the licensee may request a reinstatement hearing once the determination is final. A licensee that had a license suspended or revoked before must wait one year after the determination becomes final (§4.14.2). The hearing does not stay the suspension or revocation (§4.14.4), and DSAMH020 adds a one-year moratorium before a program that lost its license can reapply.
How long do I have to request a hearing after a DSAMH Notice of Intended Action?
Ten days after you receive it, under 6001 §4.13.2. DSAMH sends the notice by certified mail and then issues a Notice of Hearing within 15 days of your request. Once Chapter 56 is implemented the request window stays at 10 days, but a hearing officer hears the case and the provider carries the burden of proof.
What happens when a Delaware provisional license reaches its limit?
Under DSAMH020 a provisional license lasts 180 days with one 90-day extension, 270 days in all. A program still short of full compliance at that point may get one temporary license, capped at 90 days and meant for closure planning, which can’t be renewed or extended.
Facing a Notice of Intended Action or a provisional deadline in Delaware? Get in touch.
Sources
- DSAMH, 16 Del. Admin. Code 6001 (posted August 2026): Substance Abuse Facility Licensing Standards, incl. Part IV deemed status (PDF) (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware General Assembly, SS 1 for SB 161 (85 Del. Laws c. 461): Bill detail, signed August 31, 2026 (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware General Assembly, SS 1 for SB 161, Sections 6, 8, 10 to 12: Enacted bill text and implementation timing (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware Code, 16 Del. C. §§ 5601 to 5609: Chapter 56 Subchapter I, definitions, license requirement, exemptions, penalties, fees (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware Code, 16 Del. C. Chapter 56 Subchapter II: Licensing, including refusal after revocation (§ 5613) (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware Code, 16 Del. C. Chapter 56 Subchapter III: Disciplinary actions, appeals, hearings and judicial review (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware Code, 16 Del. C. §§ 5641 to 5649: Incidents, reports and investigations (checked October 14, 2026)
- DSAMH, DSAMH020 (revised October 29, 2025): Path to Full Licensure or Certification (PDF) (checked October 14, 2026)
- DSAMH, DSAMH058: License Frequency Schedule Policy (PDF) (checked October 14, 2026)
- DSAMH: Provider Policies and Resources (contact, satellite and ownership forms) (checked October 14, 2026)
- Delaware Code, 16 Del. C. Chapter 10, Subchapter I: Hospital licensing, §§ 1006 and 1007 (checked October 14, 2026)
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