A drug rehab facility licensed by the DHCS can provide certain “incidental medical services” to patients.
Sober Living Homes in California are usually unlicensed and would generally be prohibited from offering these medical services.
If an unlicensed sober recovery residence provided these services, the owners in charge of the home would be fully liable when a patient suffered injury or a tragic death.
Medical Services at an Unlicensed Facility
Sober living homes generally aren’t required to be licensed in California. They would usually provide lodging for residents who were often coming out of a more intensive rehab (perhaps a detox program). These residents may not be ready to reenter normal life.
A sober living home, also known as a transitional home, also offers peer support for other roommates battling Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and, often, support from a house manager. What these residential recovery homes can’t offer is medical services and professional counseling.
When the owners and operators of sober living homes provide these services, it can endanger the welfare of already vulnerable residents. Residents can end up with serious injuries or lose their lives.
The Health Care Sober Living Centers Can’t Provide
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) allows these incidental medical services (IMS) only at specially licensed drug treatment centers:
- Obtaining medical histories;
- Monitoring health status;
- Testing associated with detoxification from alcohol or drugs;
- Providing alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment services;
- Overseeing patient self-administered medications;
- Treating substance abuse disorders, including detoxification.
The DHCS does not usually regulate Sober Living Homes, but if a recovery home is providing IMS without a license, state investigators would get involved. The companies and corporate owners of these homes might face criminal charges; they may be forced to submit to licensing or be shut down.
Families may also have an easy time winning a wrongful death case after a loved one has died at home. If a sober living home is shown to have violated IMS restrictions and a patient suffered harm, it would serve as powerful evidence. A sober living network that advertised and promised IMS benefits to families could also be in serious trouble.
See: How to file a claim against a drug rehab facility that’s shut down.
Evidence of a Sober Living Home Providing Unlicensed Care
Gathering evidence of negligence on the part of a sober living home owner and house manager can be difficult. The corporation or organization running a home or a chain of recovery homes will have lawyers to protect them. They can block access to evidence and keep it safely hidden behind business doors.
A California rehab facility wrongful death lawyer can help families demand that critical evidence be preserved and turned over.
Some of the important evidence would include:
- A house manager treating a patient in withdrawal instead of referring them to a detox center.
- A house manager providing anything other than informal counseling and informal treatment planning.
- Transitional home website and promotional literature promising restricted medical services.
- Documents given to residents that suggest a medical screening and professional evaluation was conducted.
- Evidence that medication was administered to residents.
- Staff job descriptions detailing IMS duties.
- Evidence of insurance fraud and patient brokering.
These and other details would point to a negligent transitional home and a dangerous environment. Care delivered by unqualified staff members can be extremely dangerous for patients at risk of relapse.
Contact Us if Your Loved One Was Allowed to Die in a Sober Living Home
A patient who dies while in the care of a California drug rehab facility is not at fault. Families can hold facility owners liable for funeral costs, leftover medical bills, and the income that a loved one may have supported them with each week.
Attorney Martin Gasparian offers a free, confidential consultation to all family members. It’s a no-risk, no-obligation way to find out what a wrongful death case would be worth and how to hold a negligent residential recovery home fully responsible.
Remember, there are no upfront costs to you and your family if you need to hire a lawyer. We aren’t paid unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the settlement check a negligent recovery business must write.