HEALTH REGION PREPARES TO TAKE ON ADDICTION SERVICES

Health region officials are waiting to see if the transfer of addiction
services to its jurisdiction will have an effect on its current budget deficit.

As part of its shuffle of health care, the Liberals decided to move
addiction services from the former Ministry for Children and Families to
the Ministry of Health and ultimately to local health regions.

Kim Marshall, program director for mental health services at the Okanagan
Similkameen Health Region, said a three-member committee has been struck to
oversee the transfer.

At this point, Marshall said it is not clear if the 19 programs currently
running in the health region will be transferred along with their annual
funding.

The annual budget for those programs, which include everything from
Crossroads detox and supportive recovery centre to programs for youth,
women and aboriginals, amounts to $2.6 million. However, several million
dollars more is charged back to the Ministry of Human Resources for daily
bed rates.

The health region is facing a budget deficit of $6.8 million this year and
as much as $27 million next year, so it can ill-afford to take on new
funding commitments, said chief financial officer Chris Mazurkewich.

"We're assuming (the programs) will come fully funded," he added. "If they
don't, it could be a problem."

Ministry spokeswoman Nadine Criddell said funding for the programs has not
been fully established but that it was reasonable to assume the same
funding freeze on health and education budgets would apply to addiction
services.

Marshall said she and fellow committee members Bill Moorehead and Ken
Burrows would be meeting in mid-November at which point more information on
the transfer would be forthcoming from the Ministry of Health.

Marshall said the committee would be conducting a review of each program as
part of the transfer. What is known is that the transfer is due to be
complete by April 1, 2002.