ATLANTA (AP) — Addiction treatment centers in Georgia will be more strictly regulated under a new law signed by the state’s governor.
Gov. Nathan Deal on Thursday signed the measure, which also limits the number of treatment centers that can open in parts of the state, on Thursday morning.
A cluster of treatment centers in northwest Georgia prompted the limits on new programs. Locals say the centers serve more patients from other states than Georgia residents. State records back that up.
Deal also signed bills allowing the sale of an overdose-reversing drug called naloxone over the counter and expanding the state’s prescription drug-monitoring program, which aims to prevent over prescribing of opioids. According to the Centers for Disease Control, about 1300 people fatally overdosed on drugs in Georgia last year.