Spokane Board of Health will not outsource treatment services anytime soon

The Spokane Regional Health District has been at odds for much of the past year over whether its opioid treatment services should be outsourced to another organization.

After several months of delaying a decision to continue a study into that possibility for the methadone clinic, the Board of Health has postponed further consideration to December 2025. The delay was requested by SRHD administrator Alicia Thompson and will allow treatment services to implement its new electronic health record.

The public health agency opened its direct services for those struggling with opioid addiction in 1990 and began a feasibility study in May to see if the program could be outsourced without compromising the quality of its care. Many of the Health District’s upward of 1,000 patients have expressed concern such a transition would negatively affect their health, especially if treatment services became a for-profit entity.