Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan released an audit of Measure 110, the bill that decriminalized possession of small amounts of drugs and funneled taxes on marijuana sales to treatment services, on Jan. 19. Auditors gave the program low marks, with one auditor saying they’d give a grade of a C and the other a D in a press conference. Fagan said it’s too early to call the program a failure but acknowledged issues in Oregon’s substance abuse treatment programs.
“It is plain as day that Oregon’s drug treatment system is failing,” Fagan stated in a press release. “This is incredibly frustrating for me, and many Oregonians, because treatment is a matter of life and death for people we know. I have a brother in recovery right now. I want to see Measure 110 work.”
The audit recommended more comprehensive data evaluation to gauge success, increased collaboration between grantees and state agencies like the Department of Corrections, public safety organizations and housing authorities and structural changes to M110’s Oversight and Accountability Council that clearly define the roles of applicants and state agencies. It also called for a plan to integrate Measure 110 into the broader behavioral health system.
“I recognize that Measure 110’s success depends on Oregon’s ability to solve many larger challenges in the behavioral health system, such as the need to expand treatment capacity and better support counselors and other workers,” said Oregon Health Authority Interim Director James Schroeder.
Measure 110 resembled decriminalization efforts in Portugal, which shifted from criminal penalties to a public health approach when it decriminalized drugs in 2001. In Oregon, the state started doling out funds to service providers during the summer, but since voters approved the measure in 2020 there’s been an increase in drug abuse and overdose deaths, to OHA. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health ranked Oregon the second-most addicted state, and last for access to treatment.
Measure 110 intended to distribute money to service providers by Oct. 31, 2021, but was delayed when the volunteer Measure 110 Oversight and Accountability Council struggled to manage the workload — after which OHA lent over 130 staff members to review applications. Schroeder of OHA said he agrees with the recommendations in the audit, and stated the agency will meet the increased demand on the office from the ballot measure.
“The Secretary of State is right: It is too soon to measure the success of Measure 110. However, OHA recognizes that Measure 110 can only achieve the voters’ intent and reduce the harms from untreated substance use if OHA provides timely, robust support to its implementation and effective, reliable assistance to the Measure 110 Oversight and Accountability Council. OHA will deliver on that commitment,” Schroeder said in a press release.
The audit was the first of three that will examine Measure 110. Future audits will look at Measure 110’s impact on the number of treatment providers and whether it was successful in reducing overdose deaths. Two Oregon legislators have already started assembling workgroups to address Measure 110’s issues — including the classification of fentanyl and procedures from the oversight committee, according to The Lund Report.
This article appears in Source Weekly January 26, 2023.
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