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Traverse City facility to stop performing drug tests

Flickr User Francis Storr
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One of the largest drug treatment centers in northern Michigan will stop performing court-ordered drug tests.

For nearly 20 years, Addiction Treatment Services in Traverse City has handled thousands of court-ordered drug tests.

That’s ending later this month.

Chris Hindbaugh is the CEO of ATS. He says they’re shifting away from punitive forms of addiction treatment, like court-ordered drug tests.

“We need to really focus on a community and a public health strategy that keeps people from entering that system.”

ATS has helped handle drug tests for the 86th District Court.

Hindbaugh says their testing facility has operated in the red for most of that time.

He also says drug testing is most effective when it’s part of a treatment program.

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“It makes less and less sense for us to do that for folks outside of a treatment program or when they’re connected to it for punitive reasons.”

Starting next Friday, New Direction Testing in Traverse City will take over all of the District Court’s workload.

An administrator for the Court says they may offer more in-home testing services.