SMACK THE STATE

Coalition of Local Groups Says State Violates Law on Methadone Treatment

In an act that potentially heralds a more aggressive and confrontational
strategy to gain greater funding for drug treatment, an array of powerful
state and local groups--many not traditionally associated with drug
treatment--formally told Governor Gary Locke in a November 20 letter that
they believe Washington State is violating federal law by significantly
under-funding methadone programs.

The letter, addressed to the governor and Dennis Braddock, head of the
Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), describes as "shocking" the
fact that, because of limited funding, hundreds of Medicaid-eligible heroin
addicts who seek treatment are instead placed on waiting lists "sometimes
for years, even where there are clinics with the capacity to accept new
clients."

Generated under the auspices of the Drug Policy Project of the King County
Bar Association (KCBA), the letter is signed by such politically mainstream
organizations as the Washington State Bar Association, the Washington State
Medical Association, the Washington State Pharmacy Association, the King
County Medical Society, the Seattle League of Women Voters, and other state
medical groups.

Arguing that expanded treatment reduces social costs and saves the state
law-enforcement and incarceration expenses, the letter points out that
federal law requires that all medical services, including methadone
treatment provided under the state's Medicaid plan, which receives half its
funding from the federal government, "must be provided promptly." It points
out that in response to a 1994 lawsuit, a federal court issued an injunction
ordering California to comply with this requirement, which resulted in the
expansion of methadone treatment there.

Roger Goodman, head of the KCBA project, says local waiting lists reached 18
months or longer recently, and only $2 million more in state funding would
ameliorate the situation. He states that government officials have yet to
respond to the letter, and confirms that the state's failure to comply would
likely result in a California-style lawsuit. He adds that several local law
firms are "poised and ready" to bring such a suit.

Don Stark, head of DSHS' treatment division, concedes that lengthy waiting
lists are a problem, but says methadone treatment, on which the state
currently spends $5 million annually, is already expanding despite severe
budget constraints and pockets of local opposition. He cautions that a
lawsuit may backfire, prompting the state to drop methadone altogether from
the Medicaid program.