An Act To Improve Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Services
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1875
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: MILLETT, HASTINGS, HAMPER, HANLEY
Amends: 5 MRSA §20054

Legislative Document 
No. 1875 
H.P.1315 
House of Representatives, January 3, 2006 
An Act To Improve Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Services 
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203. 
Received by the Clerk of the House on December 28,2005. Referred to the Committee on 
Health and Human Services pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint 
Rule 401. 
Presented by Representative MILLETT of Waterford. 
Cosponsored by Senator HASTINGS of Oxford and 
Representatives: HAMPER of Oxford, HANLEY of Paris. 
Printed on recycled paper 
7rl~ 
1/7. mll£~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. I. 5 MRSA §20054 is enacted to read: 
§200S4. 
Oversight and licensing of treatment facilities and 
programs 
1. 
Examination. 
The 
office 
shall 
periodically 
enter ,_ 
inspect and examine an approved treatment facility or treatment 
program and eXamine its books, programs, standards, policies and 
accounts. 
This examination process must include a review of the 
requirements to be a community-based service provider pursuant to 
section 20071. 
The office shall fix and collect the fees for the 
inspection and approval and shall maintain a list of approved 
treatment facilities. 
Upon request by the office, 
each approved treatment facility 
shall provide data, statistics, schedules and information that 
the 
office 
reasonably requires. 
The 
director 
may 
remove 
_a 
treatment facility that fails to provide such information from 
the list of approved treatment facilities. 
An 
approved treatment facility may 
not refuse inspection or 
eXamination by the office under this section. 
Procedures 
to 
revoke 
the approval of 
any 
approved treatment 
facility or to refuse approval of any treatment facility are 
governed by the Maine Administrative Procedure Act. 
2. 
Licensing certain clinics. 
In licensing substance abuse 
clinics that administer or distribute pharmaceuticals on site, 
the office shall apply additional requirements to the operation 
of such clinics and to the licensing ~~rocedure for such clinics. 
The office shall adopt routine technical rules as defined in 
chapter 375, 
subchapter 
2-A to ensure these requirements are 
met. 
These additional requirements must include the following: 
A. 
The office when issuing a license shall consider the 
need for such a clinic in the area where the license is 
sought. 
The license may only be issued when the 4-year 
assessment required under section 20009 indicates that there 
is a clear, substantiated need for a treatment clinic in the 
area to be served by the clinic; and 
B. 
When a person, agency or corporation, whether for profit 
or not for profit. makes application to the office for a 
license, the office shall, within 5 working days, notify the 
municipal clerk in the municipality in which the clinic is 
proposed to be operated. 
The office shall work with the 
municipality to establish a local advisory committee that 
Page l-LR2742 (1) 
must consist of a 
representative from the office and a 
representative from the proposed clinic. 
The committee also 
must include 2 municipal officials, a police officer from 
the municipality if the municipality has a police force, a 
physician 
living 
or 
practicing 
in 
the 
area 
but 
not 
affiliated 
with 
the 
clinic, 
residents 
from 
the 
municipality and one resident from the neighborhood in which 
the clinic is to be located, all to be appointed by the 
municipal officers. 
The advisory committee shall receive 
information from and provide input to the office during the 
licensing process. 
The advisory committee must continue as 
a standing committee, which shall meet at least twice each 
year to review clinic operations and any concerns in the 
community. 
The advisory committee shall develop bylaws to 
ensure perpetuation of the advisory committee and manage the 
advisory committee functions. 
Sec. 2. Rules. 
The Department of Health and Human Services, 
Office of Substance Abuse shall revise its rules as follows. 
1. 
The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of 
Substance Abuse shall revise its rules to require additional 
counseling 
for 
all 
patients 
undergoing 
methadone 
treatment. 
Counseling must include intensive counseling during the first 3 
months 
of 
treatment 
and 
may 
taper 
as 
treatment progresses. 
Counseling may be provided by a clinic or by a 3rd party, with 
the cost of counseling being the responsibility of the clinic. 
The 
Office 
of 
Substance 
Abuse 
shall 
adopt 
rules 
for 
the 
communication of information between any such 3rd party and the 
clinic. 
Further, the clinic shall work with such other health, 
counseling, 
social 
service, 
employment 
agencies 
needed 
to 
possible 
successful 
treatment 
participation in the community. 
rehabili tation, 
ensure 
to 
the 
of 
patients' 
housing 
and 
maximum 
extent 
addictions 
and 
2. 
The Office of Substance Abuse shall revise its rules to 
require more physician oversight of patients undergoing methadone 
treatment. 
During 
the first 
days 
of 
treatment, 
patient 
contact with the physician must be adequate to ensure that the 
physician 
is 
familiar 
with 
the 
physical 
and 
psychological 
condition of the patient and that the physician obtains firsthand 
knowledge of the patient's status and potential for successful 
treatment. 
Physician oversight must be performed by a physician 
licensed and residing in this State. 
3. 
The Office of Substance Abuse shall revise its rules to 
require a security officer on site during all hours of clinic 
operation during the first 2 years of operation. 
Subsequent to 
the first 2 years of operation, the Office of Substance Abuse may 
require a security officer if considered necessary or appropriate 
by the 
advisory 
committee established pursuant to 
the 
Maine 
Revised Statutes, Title 5, section 20054, subsection 2, paragraph 
B. 
Sec. 3. Moratorium. 
The 
Department 
of Health 
and 
Human 
Services, Office of Substance Abuse may not issue a license for a 
substance 
abuse 
clinic 
that 
administers 
or 
distributes 
pharmaceuticals on site until it revises its rules as provided in 
this Act. 
SUMMARY 
This 
bill 
provides 
improved 
services 
to 
persons 
in 
rehabilitation 
programs, 
especially 
those 
related 
to 
opiate 
addiction, by providing improved counseling, physician oversight 
and community support. 
The bill directs the Department of Health 
and Human Services, Office of Substance Abuse to evaluate need 
when issuing licenses for substance abuse clinics and to create a 
process to involve the local community in the licensing process. 
The bill establishes local advisory committees to advise the 
Office of Substance Abuse during the licensing process for such 
clinics and to review the operation of the clinics. 
The bill 
establishes a moratorium on licensing such clinics until certain 
rule changes are made.