FALLING SHORT IN FIGHTING ADDICTION

As administrators of local treatment agencies, we receive calls every
day from frantic family members and friends of those needing services
pleading for access to care. It's extremely frustrating to inform
individuals that we currently have waiting lists for access to
residential treatment or detoxification services. Just think of what
will happen to all those in need if we lose 50 percent of our
state-funded treatment services for adults.

You would think that during a period when we face epidemics in
prescription-drug abuse, child neglect and prison overcrowding that
our Legislature would be working to find ways to address these
problems. The Florida House of Representatives has done just that.
Even though we are in a challenging budget year, the fiscal year
2010-11 House budget includes continued funding at current levels to
support Florida's addiction treatment system.

Not so in the Florida Senate. As the Senate completes its budget, it
proposes removing all funding for more than 40 substance abuse
treatment programs across the state, including three in Volusia and
one in Flagler. There must be a good reason, right? Wrong. The
programs left without state funding locally include a detox unit, a
residential program for pregnant women, residential treatment beds for
individuals with co-existing mental health and substance abuse
disorders and community supportive services to keep people drug free
and out of our criminal justice system.

Stewart-Marchman-Act's Detox unit in Bunnell provides 8 beds for
Flagler residents who require emergency medical care to safely begin
the process of recovery. Those dependent on alcohol or painkillers
risk sudden death while detoxing. Losing those beds would require that
Flagler residents travel to Volusia County for treatment -- after
waiting for a week or two for a bed. More than 400 people detoxed in
these beds last year.

The Serenity House Community Domiciliary project provides access to 22
beds for individuals with co-occurring substance abuse and
mental-health disorders. Without these beds, individuals from the
community and those being sent to treatment as an alternative to
more-costly incarceration would lose access to services. More than 90
community members would lose access to these services.

SMA's Project WARM provides a safe place for pregnant women and those
with young children to begin their recovery. Addiction in these women
constitutes child neglect. Each year Project WARM treats more than 50
women. At least 20 drug-free babies are born each year while their
mothers are in treatment.

The Serenity House Interdisciplinary Managed Care program provides
access to housing, case management, aftercare and assessment services
for high-risk women and military veterans. This program provides
community stabilization services which allows individuals in recovery
to become productive, tax-paying citizens. More than 200 individuals
will lose access to care if this project loses funding.

Where will our brothers, sisters, parents and children go when these
resources aren't available? The fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous
provides the answer. When treatment is unavailable, the alternatives
include jails, institutions and death.

Our local senators all "get it;" they understand and support treatment
services. Unfortunately, our senators -- Carey Baker, R-Eustis; Tony
Hill, D-Jacksonville; Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach, and John Thrasher,
R-Jacksonville -- are not members of the Senate Human Services
Appropriations committee. They strongly support our projects, but they
are not directly involved in crafting the human services budget.

For those senators who develop the budget, they need to remember that
budgeting is about making hard choices. The Florida Senate needs to
find the resources to continue addiction treatment services. The
alternatives for our citizens and the community are simply
unacceptable.

If you would like to assist in advocating for the continuation of
these projects, please call 236-3290 or forward an email to
cbell@smabehavioral.org or sercroy@bellsouth.net.