Sober living home operators can be liable when residents overdose and die because there’s no medication like Naloxone available, or no one trained to use it properly.

Drug-free housing owners can promise this type of critical care and be liable when life-saving precautions aren’t available.

Sober living home operators are also liable for illegal practices such as patient brokering, when agents are paid to refer discharged patients to certain drug-free living homes.

Do Recovery Residence Homes Have to Have NARCAN?

Unlicensed recovery environments, like sober living homes, aren’t generally regulated by California’s Department of Health Care Services (DHCS). They don’t regulate most drug-free housing, and can’t require these businesses to provide access to Naloxone.

The California Consortium of Addiction Programs and Professionals (CCAPP) is one such voluntary certification program that requires NARCAN for residents.

• Naloxone must be kept in an accessible spot in certified recovery residences
• A staff member or house manager must be trained in proper use
• Each house must have a printed posting showing steps to take for overdose patients

NARCAN (the brand name for Naloxone) is an essential medication for treating opioid overdoses. The CDC explains the drug is a lifesaver for patients who have taken drugs like Fentanyl or Heroin, or a drug mixed with an opioid.

It’s a safe medication that stops the life-threatening effects of an opioid reaction. It comes in either a nasal spray or as an injection. It’s generally easy to administer, but training can instruct house managers on when a second dose is needed and how to monitor patients in recovery.

Sober Living Promises and a Lack of Supervision

Sober living homes may not be licensed, but they still owe their residents a legal “duty of care.” They must protect residents from all dangers recovering SUD sufferers are exposed to.

Sober living owners (often a company or corporation) are also liable for the promises they make to prospective residents and their families. Assurances of close monitoring may be in marketing materials. Guarantees of close supervision of each resident may be in a contract a family signs to secure a bed for a loved one.

Owners and operators can be negligent in these and other safety steps and be liable for allowing an overdose:

• A failure to keep drugs out of a “drug-free” environment
• A failure to search residents, their bedrooms, and common rooms
• A failure to keep up with mandatory drug testing
• A failure to monitor and supervise residents closely enough
• Missing the signs of an overdose until it’s too late
• A failure to react properly to an overdose
• A lack of NARCAN, a failure to use it quickly enough, a failure to use it properly
• Hiring an unqualified house manager

The organizations behind sober living facilities are liable when their carelessness allows a resident to fatally overdose. But gathering evidence can be difficult. Companies can rely on teams of lawyers to try to keep the blame on the resident and to block access to important proof of what happened.

Patient Brokering and Insurance-Fraud

There are many recovery residences that are extremely helpful in getting residents back on their feet

However, the level of care and attention can vary greatly at the thousands of Sober Living Homes in California.

Many operate only as businesses out to turn a profit. They can turn to something called patient brokering to earn more residents. It’s an illegal scheme that sees agents and even staff members at licensed facilities paid for referring discharged patients to certain Sober Living homes.

It’s a sales tactic that can land vulnerable residents in homes where they won’t get proper monitoring and care.

This practice is also illegal under federal laws. A bill introduced in 2026 in California would also make it illegal to offer kickbacks to anyone for a referral to a residential treatment facility.

It’s a type of insurance fraud used by unethical recovery residence businesses. Drug-free housing owners can also try to refer patients out to medical facilities to get unnecessary testing to be able to charge insurers more.

Facilities guilty of these types of crimes and more can be easier to hold accountable when a patient is carelessly allowed to overdose.

Contact Us If Your Loved One Got Hurt in a Recovery Residence.

Attorney Martin Gasparian can obtain the evidence families need to seek justice against a negligent sober living facility. He can take action even if a home has since shut down.

Mr. Gasparian offers a free, confidential consultation to families who have a loved one get hurt or die at a California rehab facility. If your family needs help, there are no upfront charges to hire a skilled Sober Living Injury lawyer. There’s no attorney’s fee unless we win your case for your family.

Call us today or fill out a free case review form.