The Department of Health presented a statutory report to the Senate Health and Welfare on recovery housing, documenting current capacity, gaps and recommended next steps. Emily Trooder, the department’s division director for substance use disorder, told the committee the inventory identified 145 beds in 29 locations and that several counties have no certified recovery residences.

Trooder traced the evolution of recovery residences in the state, described the state’s adoption of national standards and said Act 162 required certification recommendations and a systemic assessment. She described certification levels based on National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NAR) standards — Level 1 (peer‑run), Level 2 (managed with house rules), Level 3 (supervised with on‑site staffing and life skills) and Level 4 (clinically managed treatment services) — and said the state currently has many Level‑2 sites and few Level‑3/4 certified residences.

Trooder listed key findings: insufficient statewide capacity, financial and landlord‑tenant statute barriers to operations, the need for housing tailored to specific populations (justice‑involved people, families, people with pets), and workforce and transportation challenges that limit access in rural counties. She told senators the department’s inventory reported that one large provider’s closure in 2021 removed about 58 beds from the system.

The report recommended four areas of action: reducing barriers to capacity expansion (including funding and zoning), diversifying the types and geographic distribution of recovery residences, amending landlord‑tenant law where it impedes operations, and coordinating outcome‑focused data collection without imposing duplicative administrative burdens on providers.

Trooder said the department is already working to align certification reporting with provider data systems and to use federal settlement and state funds for outreach workers and expanded services. She told the committee that demand for recovery residences is increasing and that many programs operate near capacity with wait lists.

Committee members thanked staff and asked follow‑up questions about how recovery housing referrals and justice‑involved pathways would be coordinated; Lyons and members noted the report will inform upcoming bills and cross‑committee work on landlord‑tenant and zoning issues.