The number of Maryland residents receiving substance abuse treatment through Medicaid more than doubled in less than three years, according to a new report by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. This fiscal year, 38,697 residents are expected to receive alcohol and drug abuse treatment through Medicaid, a 115 percent jump from fiscal 2009, when 17,995 residents did. This year’s projections also represent a 10.4 percent increase from last year’s 35,043 residents who received treatment.

The increase resulted from state legislation passed in 2009 allowing residents to use Medicaid to pay for outpatient treatments by transferring money from the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration’s state-funded grant program, according to the study.