IMMEDIATE ACTION:

https://sign.moveon.org/petitions/postponement-of-recovery-house-licensure?source=rawlink&utm_source=rawlink&share=062272b0-a1a2-42c1-a97b-f02c7c873c7b

Greetings to My State Representative, I am writing you as a concerned citizen of Pennsylvania who has or knows an individual in my community suffering from a Substance Use Disorder more commonly known as addiction or alcoholism.  I recently received education about the regulation of recovery houses, commonly known as sober living housing, in the state of Pennsylvania. During this education it became apparent that our loved ones and State Pennsylvanians suffering from Substance Use Disorders are in serious danger. The concern I have is the new law in Pennsylvania that provides a framework for oversight on recovery houses. My understanding is that a need for oversight is needed, and the law passed accomplishes that goal.  The Dept of Drug and Alcohol Programs was given the responsibility of setting the guidelines for oversight which is been determined to be licensure of the recovery houses in order to receive residents and /or funding from Federal, State, or County funded treatment providers.  What I was seriously concerned about was the licensure has some regulations in it that will make it difficult for most of the recovery houses in Pennsylvania to meet licensure standards before June 9,2022 the date set to stop referrals from treatment providers. This will create a great hardship for individuals who need recovery housing/sober living in order to make the transition from inpatient treatment to independent living.  The immediate concern I have is if most of the recovery residences are not licensed where will the treatment providers send their patients that need sober living? The education session discussed how the Dept of Drug and Alcohol put regulations for licensure on recovery housing that will make many houses out of compliance to local zoning laws and will force them to relocate to zoning favorable to recovery housing or shut down altogether. Another major issue is the demand that Medicine Assisted Treatment must be accepted at all Licensed recovery housing which can be problematic to those individuals seeking a sober living house that is not providing Medicine Assisted Treatment known as abstinence-based treatment. These issues are currently being negotiated by recovery house owners and The Department of Drug and Alcohol but cannot be fully resolved in time to meet the June 9th deadline for licensure.  Therefore, it is my sincerest wish that you contact the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs and advocate for an extension of the deadline so zoning issues and Medicine Assisted Treatment issues can be fully resolved and most recovery houses will then be able to license with the State. The County of Bucks has an oversite committee already in place that effectively oversees recovery houses in the county and can continue to do so until the recovery houses meet the new deadline. Single County Authorities in Lehigh, Berks, and many of the other counties have similar programs that hold sober living in compliance to safe recovery standards and the intent of Senate Bill 446. I believe a few more months are needed to iron out some of the issues in the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs to Licensure ensure a smooth transition to licensure.  The safety of current residents in treatment with providers in our state transitioning to sober house living is at serious risk if 6 more months is not granted.