Pennsylvania center strikes blow against maintenance drug

A press release sent out this week by Pennsylvania-based Clearbrook Treatment Centers opens with the provocative “Why is it that the vast majority of articles regarding alcohol and chemical dependency rehabilitation treatment all seem to have an anti-12 Step premise?” The release warns of a proliferation of quick-fix promises in the treatment community and adds, “Why is our industry allowing those with the least amount of experience to frame the issues about treatment modality?”

There are some oddities about the release as well:

• There is a link in that opening sentence that one would think might connect the reader to examples of biased articles. Instead, it links to Clearbrook's homepage.

• The headline of the release is “Suboxone Maintenance Challenged by Clearbook Treatment Center's President.” But the text never identifies the president by name, doesn't go on to mention Suboxone/buprenorphine specifically, and also makes no reference to the longstanding maintenance drug methadone.

Still, there is no mistaking the position Clearbrook is trying to convey about how medication-assisted treatment sometimes gets portrayed. “There is no coming into treatment and getting cured from the disease of addiction,” the release states. “There is no pill or remedy that will magically make one better. Those looking for a quick fix to addiction and the treatment modality being used by the vast majority of treatment providers today, will be disappointed with the direction our field is taking when this newest solution doesn't live up to its claims.”

You can read the full release, and share your thoughts with us on Clearbook's point of view.