July 6, 2004

Drug Rehabilitation Clinics: Illegal Drug Activities Near Some District of Columbia Clinics Undermine Clinic Services and Patient Rehabilitation

From April 2003 through June 2004, criminal investigators from the Office of Special Investigations (OSI) at the U.S. General Accounting Office conducted surveillance at and around five drug rehabilitation clinics in the District of Columbia, the OASIS Clinic at 910 Bladensburg Rd., NE; the D.C. General Hospital at 1900 Massachusetts Ave., SE; the Model Treatment Program at 1300 First St., NE; the United Planning Organization Comprehensive Treatment Center at 333 N St., NE; and the Department of Veterans Affairs Substance Abuse Program at 40 Patterson St., NE. The OSI criminal investigators who conducted these surveillances have many years of experience in the investigation of criminal activity, including illegal street sales of narcotics. Most of these clinics are located in nonresidential areas and are surrounded by parking lots, vacant lots, warehouses and some stores. On a daily basis, clinics in the Washington, D.C. area treat thousands of patients for a variety of substance abuse problems. We also interviewed personnel at three of the five clinics, detectives from the major narcotics branch of the Metropolitan Washington D.C. Police Department (MPD), and prosecutors from the U. S. Attorney's office in the District of Columbia. We conducted our work in accordance with quality standards for investigations as set forth by the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency.