Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §20005-B is enacted to read:

§20005-B.__Licensure of methadone clinics

Licensure of a methadone clinic, referred to in this section as a "clinic," is subject to the following requirements.

1.__Performance standards.__The office shall adopt annual performance standards based on best practices for licensure and continued licensure of clinics.__An application to license a new clinic must include plans to meet the performance standards during the licensure period.__A clinic that does not meet the performance standards at the end of a licensure period may be given 3 months to meet those standards or submit a plan of correction and may be conditionally licensed for that 3-month period.

2.__Location.__The office may not issue a license for a new clinic in a location within 2,000 feet of a licensed child care facility or a school.

3.__Public meeting.__Prior to making a determination on a license application for a new clinic, the office shall hold a public meeting in the municipality in which the clinic is to be located.__At the public meeting, the applicant for the clinic shall provide information on the operational plan of the clinic and plans for automobile traffic and security.__The office must provide public notice prior to the meeting.__The meeting must include an opportunity for the public to provide information to the office.

4.__License period.__The license period for a clinic is one year.

5.__Rulemaking.__The office shall adopt rules to implement this section.__Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.

SUMMARY

This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Substance Abuse to adopt annual performance standards for the licensure of methadone clinics and to hold a public meeting before granting the initial license for a clinic. The bill prohibits licensing a new clinic within 2,000 feet of a licensed child care facility or a school.