The drug rehabilitation industry is probably the least united in the United States. There is such a competition for clients and so many wrongs that regulations and laws are ripping the floor from under them and most don’t realize.

Patient-brokering, arrests, getting clients high, and insurance fraud, have all been relevant topics in the news around the drug rehabilitation industry. Executives are afraid to associate with centers, one relationship with the “wrong” organization and your ostracized. People not wanting to send loved ones to Florida has made the Florida market scarce. Competition for clients has created a competitive nature and a lack of communication. These components form the perfect storm for regulation and change without notice or waiver.

Insurance companies now aren’t paying for policies; regulations are getting so strict that client-care is falling behind to accommodate the new expectations. More work and less money resulted in hundreds of rehabs in Florida to shut down. We hear about the corrupt organizations getting destroyed by the sober task force, but we don’t understand, the small boutique facilities that have been weathering the storm and operating ethically, but can’t sustain any longer; they have closed too.

The negative press has presented a light that isn’t always accurate. Some of the best treatment in the world is in Florida, so why are we all blanketed under the same ominous lighting.

There are still many ethical rehabs that are hurting because so many unethical exist. There is little communication and unity overall, some small relationships are forming; the kind that looks like you send me three patients and we’ll send you two. Coalitions are popping up, left and right, but most attendees are marketers. Marketers supporting a noble cause, but have little decision power from the business side.

This article is designed to be a wake-up call. Centers all over the United States are looking down at Florida, but indeed all the illegal activity Florida was spotlighted for is happening everywhere, and the regulations and shift in providers are coming in every direction. If centers don’t start getting involved on a large scale, the industry is going to be monopolized by huge corporations that view the client as a dollar. The finger pointing at Florida will… Well, I’m sure you know the saying.

CEOs take action! Joe Bryan, the CEO of the Beachcomber, has recently launched a new coalition for CEOs to analyze regulation, collaborate, and make sure that all voices and concerns are heard. We will be meeting Tuesdays in Boca. Treatment saves lives and right now its one of the few options for treating SUD. Don’t let the market get railroaded and destroyed. Unite, get involved, and take a stand.

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    2 Comments

    • Joe says:

      You are right on.The problems in our industry was fostered by insurance companies by allowing thousands of $for urine test

    • RayBlydenburgh says:

      Joe speaks truth. I worked for two of the really corrupt agencies, and tried to be ethical at both jobs. The problems Joe addressed are long overdue by decades for confronting and out-right calling out by the local treatment facilities that were ethical, if any. Too much scrabbling for clients/patients etc.
      allowed this morass to go on forever.

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