A new California law requires addiction treatment providers to notify clients that they have the right to safe, ethical and evidence-based services. Penalties of up to $20,000 could be imposed for violations.
Senator Thomas Umberg (D-Orange County) introduced The California Ethical Treatment of Persons with Addiction Act, (Senate Bill 349) a critical and timely new law to protect California’s most vulnerable patients, those seeking treatment for substance use disorders, from predatory practices.
Senator Umberg shared that 7,121 Californians tragically died of drug overdoses (79,251 nationally) in the 12-month period ending in May 2020. This is part of a skyrocketing rise, with overdose deaths in California up 26.8% in the period between June 2019 and June 2020. Nationally, in that same time frame, deaths were up 21.3%. These numbers are expected to continue to rise as social isolation and limited access to treatment are aggravated by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.