Montgomery drug rehabilitation leaders defended themselves to council members Tuesday against allegations that residential drug programs cost too much and achieved too little.
Labor leaders urged council members last week to reduce or eliminate funding for the county’s residential drug rehabilitation programs, saying in a cost-savings memo that more than $5 million a year “is spent on programs that have yet to show any significant results.”
County government employees are trying to protect contracts that in many cases guarantee raises of about 8 percent for members.
Meghan Westwood, executive director of the Avery Road Treatment Center, told a packed room of drug treatment program advocates and the council’s Health and Human Services Committee that 83 percent of participants successfully complete the program she manages.
“We’re proud of that, the county should be proud of that. It is one of the highest, if not the highest rate of completion in the state,” Westwood said to resounding applause from numerous advocates touting signs that read “Treatment Works.”
Westwood also objected to a memo from Gino Renne, president of the Municipal and County Government Employees Organization, that said 40 percent of participants in her program do not have drugs or alcohol in their system when they are admitted.
Westwood said many people are admitted who show withdrawal symptoms but no longer have a substance in their system or who come to the program after detox elsewhere.
“To suggest we’re overfunding treatment is self-serving and irresponsible on the union’s part,” Westwood said, adding that residential rehabilitation programs are outsourced so union leaders may target them for cuts, knowing it won’t hurt their membership.
A union official at the meeting told council members their information came from union members who monitor contracts for the county. Data provided to the committee supported Westwood’s claims on completion rates but showed several other programs had completion rates of 32 to 56 percent.
Some drug rehabilitation program participants told The Examiner that contrary to Renne’s belief that rehab programs aren’t at capacity, they had to call for several days before there was room for them.
Avery Road Combined Care employee Laura Winton said she attended the meeting with many program participants to let county leaders know there are residents who will fight to preserve treatment programs as others fight to protect schools.
“This is a population that typically hasn’t advocated well for itself,” Winton said. “But when they hear of talk of making cuts to these services, they’ll be out there.”
