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California looking to pay drug addicts to stay sober

First US city to offer safe-use injection sites?

2018 Getty Images

Spencer Platt

<p>PHILADELPHIA, PA - JANUARY 24: A man uses heroin under a bridge where he lives with other addicts in the Kensington section which has become a hub for heroin use on January 24, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Over 900 people died in 2016 in Philadelphia from opioid overdoses, a 30 percent increase from 2015. As the epidemic shows no signs of weakening, the number of fatalities this year is expected to surpass last year's numbers. Heroin use has doubled across the country since 2010, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)</p>

By: Associated Press

Posted at 7:27 AM, Aug 26, 2021

and last updated 2021-08-26 18:56:07-04

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California may become the first state to pay drug addicts to stay sober.

It's called contingency management and the federal government has been doing it for years with military veterans. Research shows it is one of the most effective ways to get people to stop using drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked the federal government permission to pay for the state program through Medicaid. Meantime, state lawmakers are considering their own plan. Under the program, people earn small payments for every negative drug test. The most they could earn is a few hundred dollars.

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California looking to pay drug addicts to stay sober

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