LAFAYETTE - Acadiana law enforcement officials said Tuesday that the closure of University Medical Center's First Step Detoxification Unit this week will have little effect on their individual agencies. But a spokeswoman said one Acadiana recovery program will miss the unit's services.

Lt. Craig Stansbury, Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office spokesman, said the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center has its own detoxification unit staffed by full-time nurses and on-call physicians.

"If a person in custody needed medical attention more than they could handle, we would bring the individual to the UMC detoxification unit," Stansbury said. "They were very seldom referred."

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LAFAYETTE - University Medical Center closed its First Step Detoxification Unit on Monday, leaving 20 beds in New Orleans to service the entire state.

There are about 650 patients on a statewide waiting list for one of the 20 beds at the Medical Center of Louisiana Charity Campus detoxification unit in New Orleans, said Michael Duffy with the Department of Health and Hospitals Office of Addictive Disorders. He addressed concerns of Acadiana substance abuse counselors, physicians and treatment program administrators Monday during a public hearing at Vermilion Hospital on North University Avenue.

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Some Neighbors Nervous About Homes For Recovering Addicts

LAFAYETTE - Elizabeth LeBlanc said recovering drug addicts and alcoholics need a place to start over after leaving a rehabilitation facility. But that place shouldn't be in her neighborhood.

LeBlanc said she's afraid to stay home alone or let her two young children play in the front yard of their Harrell Drive home. That's because up to 15 recovering drug addicts and alcoholics moved into a home a few doors down nearly six months ago.

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