Section 1.  Opioid treatment programs.

(1)  Definition. In this section, “department” means the department of health services [or state department that regulates substance abuse treatment programs].

(2)  Program creation.  The department shall create 2 or 3 new, regional comprehensive opioid treatment programs to provide treatment for opiate addiction in rural and underserved, high-need areas.  The department shall obtain and review proposals for opioid treatment programs in accordance with its request-for-proposal procedures.  A program under this section may not offer methadone treatment.

(3)  Program components.  An opioid treatment program created under this section shall offer an assessment to individuals in need of service to determine what type of treatment is needed.  The program shall transition individuals to a licensed residential program, if that level of treatment is necessary.  The program shall provide counseling, medication-assisted treatment, including both long-acting opioid antagonist and partial agonist medications that have been approved by the federal food and drug administration, and abstinence-based treatment.  The program shall transition individuals who have completed treatment to county-based or private post-treatment care.

(4)  Report.  By the first day of the 24th month beginning after the effective date of this subsection, and annually thereafter, the department shall submit to the joint committee on finance [or committee of the legislature that oversees the state budget and finances] and to the appropriate standing committees of the legislature a progress report on the outcomes of the program under this section.

Note: The Wisconsin act also included a mechanism for appropriating moneys for the purposes of creating opioid treatment programs.