INPATIENT DRUG TREATMENT CENTER PROPOSED

Facility envisioned for heroin addicts

Carroll leaders have made the creation of a long-term residential drug
treatment center for heroin addicts a top priority, and are considering
Henryton Center in Marriottsville as a potential site.

Commissioners Donald I. Dell and Robin Bartlett Frazier met with members of
Carroll's delegation to the Maryland General Assembly, county health
leaders, Carroll State's Attorney Jerry F. Barnes and court officials to
discuss a plan for establishing a treatment center that would serve young
adults, most likely between the ages of 18 and 25.

"We get calls at the office, at our homes, from people looking for help for
their children," Barnes said. "In law enforcement and our court system, we
constantly struggle with the almost total unavailability of long-term
residential treatment for heroin addiction."

The number of heroin users admitted to treatment centers in Carroll jumped
from about 100 in 1994 to more than 400 in 1998, the last year for which
figures are available. Despite Carroll's growing heroin problem, few drug
treat-ment programs are available in the county, and none offers long-term
inpatient care.

Junction Inc., a Westminster-based substance abuse prevention and treatment
facility, offers intensive outpatient care. About 80 people are in treatment
there. The county Health Department also runs a treatment center at
Springfield Hospital Center in Sykesville. That facility has 39 beds, and
patients typically are treated for about a month.

In addition to treating drug addiction, a long-term residential treatment
facility would offer vocational training and educational programs designed
to help clients become productive citizens. Patients would live at the
treatment center for 18 months to two years.

Faced with the absence of such treatment programs in Carroll, many families
have turned to out-of-state facilities, officials said. One couple sent
their child to Florida for treatment, said Sen. Larry E. Haines, the
Republican leader of Carroll's delegation.

Haines suggested the commissioners consider Henryton Center, an abandoned
state hospital in Marriottsville, as a possible site for a residential
treatment center.

"I think that is a resource that at some point in time needs to be developed
to meet the needs of our citizens," Haines said. "It is an excellent
location for this program, and I think that facility is available to anyone
who wants it."

The state declared Henryton surplus several years ago. Once the state
hospital for African-American tuberculosis patients, it has been vacant for
more than 15 years. The remote location of the 50-acre site, on the
Carroll-Howard border, and its deteriorating buildings have discouraged
marketing efforts.

The commissioners have said they would favor developing a portion of
Henryton, but were averse to taking on the entire task. But yesterday they
seemed to be keeping an open mind.

"Probably in six months, some of those buildings could be renovated and up
and going," Dell said. "The issue comes down to money. It's not something we
can fund right up front by county dollars. We would probably have to get
some grants."

Most state grants would require Carroll to accept clients from other
jurisdictions, meaning that Carroll residents would not be guaranteed a bed
at the treatment center. Carroll also could lose control of the project and
the focus of the center could shift to the treatment of other drug
addictions, such as cocaine or ecstasy.

To avoid those problems, Republican Del. Nancy R. Stocksdale urged the
commissioners to develop the treatment center without state help and then
charge other counties for sending their residents to the facility.

Larry L. Leitch, director of the county Health Department, volunteered to
spearhead efforts to establish a long-term residential drug treatment center
in Carroll. Olivia Myers, executive director of Junction, and Robert A.
"Max" Bair, executive assistant to the commissioners, will work closely with
him.

Since they took office in December 1998, the commissioners have made it a
priority to "focus on youths and families" to "reduce the risk of crime and
substance abuse."

That goal, outlined in the commissioners' strategic plan, a "to do" list for
their four-year term, mirrors the commitment of Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy
Townsend to resolve the problem of heroin addiction. In April 1998, Townsend
launched a 19-point "State Heroin Action Plan" to prevent the spread of
heroin use in Maryland and to increase the availability of treatment for
heroin addiction.

Haines suggested that county leaders, including the commissioners and
members of Carroll's delegation, meet with Townsend to discuss their plans.
That meeting is not expected until Leitch and his team tour Henryton and
explore funding options.