Resolve, To Save Lives by Establishing a Homeless Opioid Users Service Engagement Pilot Project within the Department of Health and Human Services
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 1711
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: GATTINE, MAKER, ESPLING, GIDEON, PERRY, TALBOT ROSS, TUELL, VACHON, CARSON

Legislative Document
No. 1711
H.P. 1191
House of Representatives, December 22, 2017
Resolve, To Save Lives by Establishing a Homeless Opioid Users 
Service Engagement Pilot Project within the Department of Health 
and Human 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 19, 2017.  Referred to the Committee on 
Health and Human Services pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint 
Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative GATTINE of Westbrook.
Cosponsored by Senator MAKER of Washington and
Representatives: ESPLING of New Gloucester, Speaker GIDEON of Freeport, McCREIGHT 
of Harpswell, PERRY of Calais, TALBOT ROSS of Portland, TUELL of East Machias, 
VACHON of Scarborough, Senator: CARSON of Cumberland.
Sec. 1.  
Homeless opioid users service engagement pilot project.  
Resolved:  That there is established within the Department of Health and Human 
Services a pilot project to provide 50 opioid users who are among the most vulnerable 
and unstable in the State rapid access to low-barrier treatment for substance use disorders 
and stable housing to support their recovery.  The department shall implement the 
program through social service contracts no later than September 1, 2018.
Participants in the pilot project must be homeless, unemployed, polysubstance users 
and users of hospital services or involved in the criminal justice system.
Project participants must have rapid access to services of the pilot project directly 
from emergency shelters, the criminal justice system and hospitals.
The pilot project must provide services in both an urban and a rural area of the State.
To the extent permitted by resources that are allocated to the pilot project, the pilot 
project must include the following:
1.  
Low-barrier, medication-assisted treatment that uses a shared medical 
appointment model for delivering office-based, daily observed therapy and group and 
individual mental health services or other appropriate services;
2.  Access to stable housing that offers a range of choices that promote recovery, 
independence and harm reduction and that allow a project participant to transition easily 
from one type of housing to another based on what is needed for the project participant's 
success; and
3.  A treatment team that meets project participants where they are physically located 
to ensure success in early stages of the pilot project as the project participants work 
toward recovery, employment and self-sufficiency.  Support that uses enhanced risk 
evaluation and mitigation strategies and intensive case management and peer recovery 
services must be provided to project participants.
The department shall engage in rigorous evaluation of the pilot project in order to 
inform future interventions and provide a model that can be replicated throughout the 
State; and be it further
Sec. 2.  Report.  Resolved:  That the Department of Health and Human Services 
shall report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over 
health and human services matters regarding the pilot project under section 1 by March 
15, 2019.  The joint standing committee may submit legislation regarding the pilot 
project, including legislation to continue the pilot project, to the First Regular Session of 
the 129th Legislature.
SUMMARY
This resolve establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services a pilot 
project to provide rapid access to low-barrier treatment for substance use disorders and 
stable housing to support recovery and create stability for 50 opioid users who are among 
the most vulnerable and unstable in the State.  It directs the department to implement the 
pilot project no later than September 1, 2018 and to report to the joint standing committee 
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over health and human services matters by March 
15, 2019.  The joint standing committee is authorized to submit legislation regarding the 
pilot project, including legislation to continue the pilot project, to the First Regular 
Session of the 129th Legislature.