The Alabama Nursing Board's drug rehabilitation program is “dehumanizing,” nurses say

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Alabama's Voluntary disciplinary alternative programA voluntary program for nurses suffering from substance abuse and addiction recently came under fire from former participants who called it “dehumanizing” and too expensive.

“Overall, this board is one of the best boards in Alabama,” Joseph Kreps, an attorney for several nurses who participated in VDAP, said last week during a Sunset Committee hearing at the Alabama State House.

“Unfortunately, this board is not equipped to supervise caregivers suspected of addiction or mental health issues.”

While managed by Third PartyVDAP is approved by the Alabama Board of Nursing, one of several state regulatory agencies that appeared before the Sunset Committee.

The program was created in 1994 and requires participants to undergo substance abuse treatment, monitoring and evaluation at their own expense. Upon completion, VDAP allows participants to avoid further disciplinary action and keep their participation in the program confidential.

“Yes, this component includes a comprehensive mental health evaluation and may also include some on-site testing; These things are expensive, and we can’t control what providers do and how much they charge,” said Peggy Benson, executive director of the board of care.

However, Benson noted that the board offers around 20 different providers, allowing participants to choose from a range of different costs.

However, even among the 20 or so providers, Kreps argued that the organizations were largely profit-oriented, which contributed to the ongoing dissatisfaction of some VDAP participants.

“The board is turning nurses over to expensive, for-profit, board-approved treatment providers who push unnecessary and expensive care for the financial gain of the for-profit treatment facilities,” Kreps said.

“Some of these treatment providers are owned by venture capitalists. For the professionals and licensees of the state of Alabama, venture capital has nothing to do with addiction recovery. This is wrong.”

Bradford Health Services, a rehabilitation center north of Birmingham and one of the listed providers under the BVAP program, was acquired by Lee Equity Partners – a New York-based private equity firm – in 2022.

Another parent-owned provider that uses a private equity model to acquire assets is Ridgeview Institute in Jasper. Acquired by US HealthVest in 2017.

The dissatisfaction among the BVAP participants was documented in the Nursing committee audit report between 2019 and 2023. This report contained 220 complaints from caregivers about the program.

Some nurses, such as Abby Vinson, attended the hearing in person to speak about their experiences with the program.

“When I reached out to the Board of Nursing for help, I was treated more like a criminal than a professional,” Vinson said.

“Even though I had no history of patient endangerment or criminal activity, I was forced to pay a $5,000 tax bill and then told by the treatment facility that I would have to pay upfront for a 90-day inpatient rehabilitation program. which is covered by my health insurance at zero percent, which I had to get privately because I lost my job.”

Vinson went on to say that she was “forced” to take sedative medications during her time in the program, that she was “forced to work lower-paying shifts,” and that her participation in the program was reflected in her annual performance review, putting her in violation of the terms of the program program violated data protection clauses and that the entire experience was “dehumanizing.”

Tyanna Arroyo, another participant in the program, also described the experience as dehumanizing, saying she was forced to borrow $18,000 and spend thousands on drug testing therapy, which she called “outrageously expensive and unrealistic.”

“I accept full responsibility for my past actions and consequences; What I didn’t expect was to feel disrespected and dehumanized and treated worse than a human being,” Arroyo said.

“The financial, emotional and mental toll of participating in a monitoring program almost caused me to give up on my calling in nursing altogether.”

While Benson acknowledged that the procedure was expensive, he maintained that it was among the best in the country and stressed that it met all national standards for rehabilitation programs.

When Sen. Garlan Gudger, R-Cullman, heard the two nurses' reports, he told Benson that he would like to continue discussions about the BVAP, noting that the cost was “a lot of money.”