Detox center slated for closure to stay open

Santa Fe County officials reached an agreement with Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center to keep open a detox center that was previously slated for closure.

The hospital will hand off operations of The Sobering Center to the Santa Fe Recovery Center on July 1.

Hospital officials earlier this year said they might shut down the facility at 2052 Galisteo St., after operating it since 2010.

The county launched the program to keep people with alcohol and drug abuse disorders out of jail and out of the hospital’s emergency room.

But Medicaid, the state-run health insurance program, would not reimburse St. Vincent for certain services it provided through the initiative because the center is not an accredited rehabilitation facility.

Under the nonprofit and accredited Santa Fe Recovery Center, the sobering program is expected to provide enhanced detox services, increased medical supervision, access to on-site treatment and ongoing access to longer term treatment as well as transitional housing.

The deal to transfer control of the center comes with $300,000 in county funds and about $488,000 a year from St. Vincent. With Medicaid funds, the Sobering Center’s total budget will total about $1.1 million.

In a statement, County Manager Katherine Miller called it “a win-win situation for the county, the hospital and most importantly our residents that are in need of such important services.”

The county still lacks a facility for patients who need 24-hour medically supervised detox, such as people coming off hard drugs like cocaine. That service is only available in Albuquerque. And the country does not have a residential recovery program just for women.