This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah House authorized new, broad oversight of drug-treatment centers Friday after hearing reports over the summer about tens of millions of dollars of insurance treatment fraud by fly-by-night programs and no state apparatus to stop it.
"If we're going to put time, money and effort into treatment, let's make sure that treatment is actually being done," said Rep. Eric Hutchings, R-Kearns.
Last fall, legislators heard stories about owners of treatment facilities drinking and doing drugs with patients in treatment and engaging in sexual relationships with others. Some patients were listed as living in the homes of employees, bounties were paid to recruiters who could sign former jail inmates up for treatment and some were brought in from outside the state.
One insurance company that was targeted for the abuse said it cost tens of millions of dollars in Utah alone.
And lawmakers were alarmed to discover there was no state agency to regulate the centers. The Department of Health could oversee the safety of facilities and state licensing officials could take action against the therapists.
Hutchings' bill, first substitute HB259, would allow state regulators to revoke a provider's license for up to five years, give the Department of Human Services more authority to monitor operations and investigate complaints, and would limit a practice at some treatment centers of having patients sign documents giving power of attorney to the center staff.
The Department of Human Services would also be given the authority to set minimum standards for treatment centers. Actions taken against centers found to be engaging in abusive practices would be posted online.
The bill passed the House 70-0 and moves to the Senate for consideration.