Letter to the editor: Encinitas City Council to discuss sober living homes

The Encinitas City Council will discuss Sober Living Homes Wednesday, May 13th at 6:00pm.

A strong turnout for this meeting by residents is urged to send a visible signal to the City Council that voters are concerned about neighborhood safety, crime and accountability from businesses operating sober living homes in Encinitas’ residential areas. The meeting will be held at Encinitas City Council Chambers on 505 South Vulcan Avenue.

Related to this, the highly acclaimed documentary, “The Business of Recovery” will be screened for free at the Encinitas Library Tuesday, May 12th at 7:00pm. Produced by a former rehab insider, it sheds a bright light on the $35 billion dollar industry of high-priced addiction centers and sober living homes in residential neighborhoods. With no real barriers to entry, sober living homes are popping up in residential neighborhoods everywhere like toadstools after a rain. It is a system ripe for abuse:

· The client base consists of highly vulnerable people.

· There are no operating standards that regulate quality, efficacy, or safety related to treatment of recovering addicts, employment and training requirements for on-site staff, or selection and location of facilities.

· There are no designated government agencies with the authority to audit, inspect, monitor, investigate complaints, or hold operators accountable.

· They are highly profitable enterprises, with payment sources that include health insurance companies, tax-payer funded government programs, and the personal finances of families and recovering addicts desperate for solutions.

Seating is limited, and anyone who wishes to attend must do so using the link below in order to be admitted. Q&A with the producer will follow the film, which is 85 minutes. The library is located at 540 Cornish Drive in Encinitas.

-Ann Sullivan