How Change in Washington Impacts Addiction Treatment in Minnesota

Addiction treatment in Minnesota is at a crossroads.

The Minnesota Model emphasizing abstinence has been replicated across the country. But medically assisted treatment, also known as harm reduction, has become more common in recent years, and some studies have shown promising results. Minnesota’s state government invested $18 million in harm-reduction programs two years ago, and nonprofit groups have set up no-barrier housing programs to get people into treatment that's often funded by Medicaid.

But that trend is being disrupted by several factors, including accusations of Medicaid fraud against some harm-reduction programs in Minnesota and other states. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has expressed a strong preference for abstinence-based treatment approaches, while Medicaid cuts will affect hundreds of thousands of people in Minnesota.

MinnPost columnist Andy Steiner talks to treatment providers, policymakers, and those seeking out substance-use treatment to tell the story of how these changes affect Minnesotans. Steiner looks at the policy changes and their impact on the state, including specific examples of people affected. She also looks into medically assisted treatment programs at risk of being cut, and the rippling effects those closures would have. Steiner delves into access to substance-use treatment in rural Minnesota, where government funding has helped improve access over the years but might be able to continue in the same way.