ADDICTION REHAB GUIDE - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health

Dr. Rebekah Gee, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health, cautioned that "Louisiana has more opioid prescriptions than we have people, and the widespread distribution of Naloxone is a key component of our strategy to combat the opioid epidemic and save lives."

Sober living homes offer a substance-free residential community for those in early recovery. Sober living offers support and guidance to those who are transitioning from a treatment program back to independent living. Individuals are able to return to work and live a normal life while in a sober living home. Sober living homes might be run by an organization affiliated with drug and alcohol treatment, or they can be a more structured environment such as a clinical facility or faith-based home.

Drug courts in Utah were established in 1996 as part of an ongoing effort to fight the rising number of drug-related crimes in the state's communities. Drug courts offer drug treatment and recovery programs to nonviolent drug offenders as an alternative to traditional incarceration. Drug violators who qualify for Utah drug court must submit a guilty plea for their charges. The plea is put on hold while the offender is in drug court. If the person successfully completes the program, the guilty plea is withdrawn and the charges are dropped. However, if the person doesn't complete treatment, they will go to jail. Since the first Utah drug court was put into place in Salt Lake, the statewide program has seen hundreds of successful graduates.