Trading One Drug for Another? What Drug Treatment Court Professionals Need to Learn About Opioid Replacement Therapy

Historically, drug treatment courts (DTC) have been hostile to medically assisted treatment (MAT) with methadone. Many judges required defendants to stop, taper or forebear treatment with methadone as a condition of admission to or graduation from DTC. This has sometimes had disastrous results including the death of at least one DTC participant and a long prison sentence for others. There are national changes within the DTC movement that makes this an ideal time for MAT providers to approach and work with DTCs. This paper reviews the historical antagonism and recent changes that make a new partnership possible.