An Act to Support Evaluation of Project Hope Diversion Efforts

The purpose of this concept draft is to facilitate discussion of how to effectively evaluate the outcomes associated with the various Project Hope initiatives across the state. These projects are sponsored by several local police departments and involve persons with substance use disorders dropping illicit drugs at the police station and being sent to detox beds, usually outside the state of Maine. While as many as 300 persons may have taken advantage of these opportunities there has been no formal evaluation of how these patients do following this intervention.

This bill is intended to facilitate such an evaluation by accessing funds available from state or federal substance use appropriations and authorizing HHS to put together an RFP or a contract with a reputable research firm to perform such an evaluation.