On April 24, the SF Board of Supervisors Committee on Administration unanimously endorsed Supervisor Matt Dorsey’s Recovery First Drug Policy. The amendments were suggested by the San Francisco/Marin Medical Society to make the language more precise in medical terms, but did not substantively change the policy statement, which now reads, “Long-term remission of substance use disorders for individuals, with the help of fully supported and staffed evidence-based recovery and behavioral health services, shall be the primary goal of the Cityʼs substance use disorder treatment policy,” with “remission” defined as “living a self-directed healthy life, free from illicit drug use.”
I particularly like the “free from drug use” language because it echos the freedom framing modeled on smokefree environments that I discussed in my letter to the Board supporting the policy statement.
The Associated Press has a good story on the passage which discusses its broader implications.
The full Board will vote on it on May 6.
Here is Supervisor Dorsey’s news release on the amended language and the letter from the Medical Society supporting the ordinance and explaining the changes:
Stanton Glantz blog 