The ACLU of Massachusetts and Goodwin Procter LLP filed a lawsuit today against the Federal Bureau of Prisons for denying medication for addiction treatment (MAT) to incarcerated people who are diagnosed with opioid use disorder, as applied to an individual client.
Statement from Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts:
“The overwhelming medical evidence and consensus—including that of the federal government—supports MAT as the standard care for opioid use disorder. Yet, federal facilities deny it to the vast majority of incarcerated patients suffering from opioid addiction. Denying medication for addiction treatment in correctional settings is unsafe and unlawful. Public officials should support people in their efforts to overcome opioid addiction, not obstruct them.”
Statement from Ira Levy, partner at Goodwin Procter LLP:
“Ms. DiPierro has been successfully treated by methadone for a number of years. Denying her continued access to her life-saving medicine would be inhumane, and constitute cruel and unusual punishment. We urge the Bureau of Prisons to update their practices and acknowledge the universal perspective that the full breadth of medication assisted treatment for opioid use disorder, including methadone, is the absolute standard of care and should be made available for Ms. DiPierro for her imminent incarceration."
