Thursday, August 31, 2017

August 29, 2017 • Vol. 5., No. 5
Treatment Industry & Recovery Community News
"No bird soars too high, if he soars with his own wings."
- William Blake
Physical Favors?
Behind the luxury: Turmoil and shoddy care inside five-star addiction treatment centers
AUGUST 25, 2017- The marketing blitz and an infusion of private equity money have helped make Recovery Centers of America into the self-described fastest-growing addiction treatment provider in the country. Launched less than three years ago by a high-end real estate developer, it’s part of a rush of entrepreneurs who see opportunity in the treatment business as the opioid crisis sweeps the country ... Every room has a flat-screen television and private bath ... One staff member complained to the state that patients were trading their medication for financial and physical favors. 
Official Response...
Recovery Centers of America's response to recent Boston Globe article
“The Boston Globe article contains unsubstantiated allegations that included information in violation of several laws, such as:Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Patient Records (42 C.F.R, Part 2), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and related regulations, as well as the MA patient bill of rights."...
The Donald Trump of Rehabs? VIDEO
Growing Number of Rehab Clinics Under Increasing Scrutiny VIDEO
Aug. 23, 2017 - A former rehab patient says instead of getting clean, he was exposed to harder drugs. Carolyn Johnson reports for the NBC4 News… 
What About the High Holidays?
or, Fiddler on the Roofies?
First rehab center for Jewish addicts opens in Brooklyn
August 22, 2017 - Counselors and former addicts Judah Weiner (from left to right), Stephen Siegel and Henry Moultrie at Journeys, the first drug and alcohol rehab center geared to assist Jewish addicts in Borough Park.The center, called Journeys, is state-certified and has more than 10 rooms for counseling and group therapy. “The answer isn’t to send them off to some fancy rehab in California or Arizona,” said Barbara Silverstein, 45, program director and health care coordinator of the center.
Put One in the Win Column VIDEO
White Sox rookie sensation Nicky Delmonico beat addiction on way to majors VIDEO
Delmonico was a 22-year-old addicted to Adderall, the attention-deficit disorder drug he had been prescribed since high school. And without undergoing 45 days of treatment in February 2015, the rookie White Sox outfielder knows he never would be enjoying one of the best debuts in team history now. “I dug down deep. Not only did I learn about the medicine and what it was doing to me, but I had to figure out what was going on in my life and get back to being myself … the previous summer when he was suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball. 
Hijacking in Progress
How Science Is Unlocking the Secrets of Addiction
September Issue: Addiction hijacks the brain’s neural pathways. Scientists are challenging the view that it’s a moral failing and researching treatments that could offer an exit from the cycle of desire, bingeing, and withdrawal that traps tens of millions of people. Janna Raine became addicted to heroin two decades ago after taking prescription pain pills for a work injury. Last year she was living in a homeless encampment under a Seattle freeway. 
Hoosegow as Detox? VIDEO
Experts advocate for leaving addicts in local jails VIDEO
August 24, 2017 - She called her friend, John Shinholser, president of the McShin Foundation, an addiction recovery center, who told her jail was the best place for Austin and to leave him there. “You don’t let a drunk driver back out on the road when they’re still drunk, why are you going to let an addict back out in the community when they’re still toxic?” Shinholser explained. 
Pharma's Favorite!
We Need to Talk About Our Generation’s Xanax Problem
Aug 23 2017 - With the obviously-growing reputation of benzos, and Xanax in particular, I just wanted to try them. But tolerance built pretty quick, and soon it starts to take triple what it took at first to get you where you want to be. Being sober was the last thing I wanted because I liked the feeling of Xanax so much, so I was pretty much on it 24 hours a day.”
Carfentanil - Synthetic Form of Fentanyl
The Opioid Epidemic’s Biggest Culprit Isn’t Heroin Anymore — It’s Something Deadlier
August 22, 2017 - Even after that close of a call, where he narrowly escaped losing his liberty — and his life — he admits, “I still can’t promise I’ll never use opioids again. It’s too good.
Working Every Angle
Company Quietly Making Opioid Addiction Searchable
Aug. 21, 2017 - Appriss, a 600-employee company in Louisville, is working to mitigate a U.S. opioid crisis blamed for more than 20,000 fatal overdoses a year—33,000 when heroin-related deaths are included—and $79 billion in annual response costs and lost productivity. 
It's Them,
Not Me
In Lawsuit, Sovereign Health Blames Health Net for June FBI Raid
August 20, 2017 - The FBI did confirm, however, that it was conducting an investigation at the company’s Southern California locations as well as Vedanta Laboratories where agents were seen carrying out materials and speaking to employees on June 13...“On June 30, 2016, Sovereign filed a complaint against Health Net in the LosAngeles Superior Court, alleging bad faith, breach of contract and other state law claims resulting from Health Net’s wrongful denial of over $55 million in claims by Sovereign,”...
Next to the
Band-Aids?
NYC lawmaker: Schools should have anti-overdose kits VIDEO
August 24, 2017 - America’s opioid epidemic has infiltrated all segments of the population, regardless of age, race or class. This is why New York City Councilman Rafael Salamanca introduced a bill Thursday that would force New York’s public schools to stock anti-overdose kits. The drug naloxone can reverse opioid overdoses and may be delivered with a cheap easily used a nasal spray. From 2000 to 2016, 69 people ages 15 to 18 died from opioid-related overdoses, according to data released from the Department of Health.
DRUG STORE
Lives Up to Its Name
Pharmacy owner convicted of running oxycodone ‘pill mill’
August 23, 2017 - Customers who had prescriptions to obtain other medicine also had the paperwork “washed,” or “bleached,” so it could be re-written to request oxycodone.
13th Step Center
Ex-drug rehab nurse who had sex with patients violates probation
Aug. 22, 2017 - A former nurse at a Wheatfield drug rehabilitation facility who had sex with two male patients last year faces a possible four-year prison sentence as she admitted Tuesday that she violated probation terms.
It Works If You Work It VIDEO
Mother recovers with help of Salvation ArmyVIDEO
“Addiction. Opioid addiction, marijuana, alcohol, the life ... the streets ... just hustlin’, per se, in and out committing crimes to feed this hungry addiction.”
Rush to Die
Young people face stroke risk with meth use
August 25, 2017 - Methamphetamine use was linked most strongly to a type of stroke caused by bleeding in the brain, known as a hemorrhagic stroke, as opposed to ischemic stroke, which is caused by blood clots.
Pain = Opiates = Pain VIDEO
Art exhibition reveals pain of opioid addictionVIDEO
August 25, 2017 - Of the 53 works of art on display at the second annual Heroin & Opioid Art Exhibition in Newark, some directly evoke the pain of addiction like a needle in your soul.
VIDEO of National Geographic Article
Addiction causes “hundreds of changes” in the brain? VIDEO
August 25, 2017 - Smith joined “CBS This Morning” to discuss how addiction changes the way a person’s brain functions and whether it can be re-trained out of those changes. 
Mess in Mass.
Addiction treatment center’s admissions shut down by Mass. over safety concern
The state’s announcement came hours after the Globe and STAT published on their websites a lengthy investigation into evidence of turmoil and shoddy care at RCA’s Danvers and Westminster treatment centers. The Massachusetts facilities have been plagued by concerns of understaffing and inadequate treatment, and staff have complained to the state that they fear they are not able to keep patients safe. Statewide this year, the DPH has investigated nine complaints at treatment centers — and three of those investigations were at RCA properties.
It's Coherent
What I Learned While Attending an Alcohol-Free Cocktail Party
August 25, 2017 - The atmosphere is like that of so many other product launches taking place across the city. Located at a co-working space in the Flatiron district ...Youngish, casually dressed professionals congregate around the room’s three bars.
Clean Carp Diem VIDEO
Fish on Drugs May Help Cure Opioid Addiction VIDEO
Aug. 25, 2017 - Zebrafish are being used more often to study mental health disorders because of the similarity physiologically and genetically to people, and previous studies have shown that they can develop addictive behavior...
Writing Down the Bones
Bestselling Author Helps New Generation of Recovery Writers Tell Their Stories
Aug. 14, 2017 – Anna David knows about the power of sharing your story, too. Anna is a New York Times bestselling author who’s written six books about addiction and recovery. Her first book, “reality fiction” novel Party Girl, drew heavily on her own experience getting sober in Los Angeles.
Turning Over a New One
Ryan Leaf, former NFL quarterback ex-imprisoner delivers a message of hope
Aug. 24, 2017 - When it all spun out of control, he found himself in prison after breaking into homes to steal prescription pills in Montana ... Leaf, who has been clean and sober for more than five years now, said three principles guide his life now — accountability, spirituality and community.
Exercise Caution
Yoga Mat Chemicals May Mess With Your Fertility
August 26, 2017 - Your yoga mat may be less likely to catch fire but is it affecting your fertility? There are a class of chemicals commonly used in yoga mats, sofas, car seats, and other types of polyurethane foam. What then can you do besides wearing a hazmat suit and holding your breath throughout yoga class (which would be counter to yoga practice and not advisable)? 
Lock Them Up VIDEO
Families seek involuntary commitment laws as key tool in saving opioid addicts VIDEO
Aug. 23, 2017 - In some states, such as Ohio, it’s so difficult to get a petition approved that many families don’t even try. In other states, “judges and attorneys are hesitant to move forward” in part because of civil rights concerns, said Dr. Marvin Seppala, chief medical officer at the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.
LAWYER'S OPINION
Palm Beach County’s Blind Shot at Addiction Treatment Industry
January 6, 2017 - We should all be afraid when there is a “war” declared on anything in our culture because it usually means the complex will be simplified, the innocent will be presumed guilty ... Nowhere is that more apparent than the current War on Sober Homes in Palm Beach County.
Whatever WORKS!
Psychedelic drug may be approved for PTSD therapy
August 27, 2017 - The MDMA program was created by a small group of psychedelic researchers who had toiled for years in the face of ridicule, funding shortages and skepticism. But the results have been so positive that this month the Food and Drug Administration deemed it a “breakthrough therapy” – setting it on a fast track for review and potential approval.
Take a Trip, Don't Take a Trip VIDEO
Neuropsycho-phrmacologist David Nutt on Alcohol, LSD, and Getting Sacked for His FindingsVIDEO
August/September 2017 - It helps us make sense of why drugs like LSD can change the way people behave in the long term. The founder of [Alcoholics Anonymous], Bill Wilson, became a profound enthusiast for LSD. It works. 
Yep, there's an new app for that
Former Addict Launches Sobriety App
August 28, 2017 -I wanted to highlight his story of being an addict and how he turned everything around and launched a sobriety app that helps recovering addicts connect with peers anonymously 24/7. "My name is Damien and I’m a recovering addict. I’m also the founder of Pocket Rehab...
Little Angel
VIDEO
Patton Oswalt: My Daughter Saved Me from Being a ‘Shut-In Alcoholic’ After My Wife’s Death VIDEO
August 17, 2017 - “If I hadn’t had a daughter and my wife died, we wouldn’t be talking right now. I’m not saying I would be dead, but I would be a shut-in alcoholic,” Oswalt revealed in a new interview...
Treatment Can Also Save Lives VIDEO
Hooked, hoodwinked: Some drug rehabs aim for relapse and $$VIDEO
August 24, 2017 - “It’s terrible right now. I don’t know of any business that wants to kill its customers, but this one does,” said Timothy Schnellenberger, who has worked for years in running addiction recovery centers in Florida. “It really breaks my heart.
Go Make a Movie
REEL Recovery Film Festival
is a social, educational, networking and recovery forum showcasing first-time filmmakers and experienced professionals who make films about addiction and recovery. Our audience is treatment professionals, people in recovery, members of the entertainment industry, media representatives, educated moviegoers & the general public.


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EDITORIAL by John Shinholser
As We Tear Down Confederate Monuments, The Civil War Lives On In The Addiction Crisis
August 25, 2017 - It’s ironic that an 18-year-old white kid can smoke the same pot at University of Virginia that an 18-year-old black kid smokes in Westhaven, a housing project in Charlottesville. The main difference is that UVA has campus police, who keep the drug user on campus and out of jail. It’s to protect the college’s interest: conserving daddy’s $300,000 investment in the Charlottesville economy. The same city pays Charlottesville police to arrest the black kid… 
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