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from the centre for investigative reporting in p r. Ex this is revealed formality today were wrapping up our look back at our series. American. We hear a lot has happened since it first air, including a federal investigation, a class action lawsuit, and so we have facilities closing their doors. We're gonna tell you about that, but first we're going yet today where we started the syrians with a phone call between our reporter shanna Walter Woman named penny rawlins. I look like I gotta get a hold of the lady. I gotta tell her that keys on the right track with this. Is that right people need help penny was worried. Sick about our brother TIM row. She'd sent him to do we have called cynical. All they do is just work, the dog that at the end, and you don't get pay the shape my head was in there just happen.

You ve, seen it over and over him are have a consistent behaviour of talking to that non sport. Zena verbal chair, pronounced for the chanting strange punishments. It all goes back to one of the very first drug we have in the nation cinema who started. Fenelon cinema foundation was started in nineteen. Fifty eight by ex alcoholic charles eat friedrich, we all. The work, of course, doesn't get any That's why it is all over the world it soon and on every one word you're, not getting, Paid minimum wage fifty dollars a month do know. Is that legal? That's a good question, unpaid work and a form of confrontational therapy called the game.

you, you don't lose their people. We brainwash him without a brain is good cinema crumbled, but its members picked up the pieces and spread in the far and wide it was similar to synanon yeah. It was the same way by one researchers count in the seventies. There were five hundred rehabs in the united states that descended from sin and on one of those was cynical founded by a dangerous man named luke lasting and he came in the kitchen grab me. and he threw me on the poor little girl my face used. it ain't. This is oh yeah! Well, this was not what I was expecting you to to to tell the truth. I still do witnesses.

Cynical, embrace, unannounced punishments. The first thing I did was she's. My head, this tribute down come like take away everything you think defines you They are trying to brainwash you not in Actually, you just bought a cynical apart of cynical, is an inherently american solution to drug addiction. I was, dancing through your seneca button. I, like the very first sentence, in all the years of cena has been in business rebuild dating lives. We have found that nothing works as well as work itself. much money you made for them or you were there, thousands tens of thousands We are now I'm really serious. I really want you guys, tat another. There have to be along the envelope here, penny. Rollings questions are at the heart of our investigation. People working

I grant I mean that's slave labour. Every week we eyeball library. I can't read my head around it today. We're gonna answer. The biggest should we have just how largesses how many rehab some people to work without pay and were also answer another question that listeners have asked us since we first started the series: is this legal? Does the work actually pay for the treatment? It's a fair question and one that the highest court in the land has also wrestled with back in the nineteen eightys. The supreme court heard a case from another called two short missouri.

in the ulama christian foundation. It's leaders tony and Susan Alamo, recruited members, many of them young people with drug addictions and provided counseling and a place to stay, but work was also a part of the deal. The show looked into the ulama case to understand where the work base, rehab, illegal or not tony and susan olano claim to be on a mission to see the lost souls of the hippy era at the end of the nineteen. Sixty is the couple brought their own brand of apocalyptic gospel to the streets of allay. It was a fringe form of pentecostal ism. They preach salvation in hollywood and developed a following among the young and the desperate. Always your life like me for came to the foundation is miserable. One hour about eleven twelve years old. I got involved with junkies drug addicts for nineteen years,

just wandered around to spin loaded and the five then came out. California just seek an eleven peace but I couldn't find out who their young devotees call themselves. Jesus freaks, they'd walk the hollywood strip, look for new recruits. Building the alarm owes a large and passionate following with thousands of members and and soon the alarmist began. Putting those members to work just likes it instead of core. They gave them a play to stay and a job to do, but they didn't pay them by nineteen. Seventy six, the Olano christian foundation, has thousands of members. They move their church from hollywood to arkansas. and with it they also moved the alamo businesses from trucking companies to record labels, but none as visible as this clothing enterprise, its clothing,

Enterprise churned out by dazzled, an air rushed designer jean jackets. They became a huge Dad. You probably see these rhinestones studied jackets, possibly on the backs of the celebrities, dolly part in mister t brook shields, They were all wearing these sparkly denham masterpieces they ve sold for up to a thousand dollars now paying salaries or taxes. The allow most created a fan, chill empire with property holdings alone worth at least twenty five million dollars in return. The workers who helped build that empire got room and board worth about two hundred dollars: a month as compensation. It worked out too about eighty three an in our you. Don't get it. the thing on your own. You can you? Can you work outside jobs at work for the church? some former members complained that the allow most were breaking the law. Everything you didn't make illustrates the church, you don't keep any

the law the allow most were accused of breaking was the fairly our standards act passed a night in thirty eight, it defined a mirror. In working life. The eight hour day Forty our work week and overtime pay after called it the most in port, part of the new deal after social security. The act basically says I'm one works for you. You have to pay them. If you don't you'll, be hearing from the department of late Yolanda foundation is charged with feeling to pay minimum wage and overtime compensation to several hundred employees, labour bombing lawnmowers, more than fifteen million dollars and back pay, but here's where it gets tricky Lama foundation argued that as a religious organisation, they were exempt from the law. It's just the kind of big church versus Eight argument that could only be settled in one place: the supreme court course will hear arguments first. This morning, Johnny

A lemon Labour Whenever you it's nineteen, eighty five and the alarm. A lawyer argues that a major part of the pentecostal faith is doing work for the church. If the court ruled against theological foundation, it could affect the religious lives of millions of them. the council's, who volunteer their labor in the service of god. This work was how they practice there. Jim even running the rest solely rhythm, yes or no to a family The alarming lawyer explained that the court should think of the members, even the ones, King diner food pumping gaston's owing designer jackets as pastures and evangelists. A lawyer for the labour department argued that dedication to a cause or even a job mean that the person should be compensated and if the per in doing the job doesn't have another choice like they did

and on the organization there working for to give them a roof over their head and something to eat. Then that's a form of quid pro quo in this case. In your view, does turn on whether the associates had the expectation of compensation. in the form of roman board I believe so. Your honour, the district court, found as a fact, and there was ample testimony that they contemplated that they would be fed clothes and shouted as a result of their work at the foundations, commercial businesses. court ruled against the allow most they said workers are entitled to be paid for their labor, at least minimum wage plus overtime and it doesn't matter if the organization there working for puts a roof over their head or if their working out of religious devotion this church. Earl arkansas came to rubber.

Then a major affirmation of the fair bursting standards act, their business Mrs were located at the intersection of basically Hi highway and interstate Michael hancock join the labour department about a decade after the supreme court decision but when he was living and working in arkansas, he used to visit the olano compound. They had a big drugstore They had a diner if attached to the truck, stop and I'm not exaggerate the best, biscuits in graveyard. Ever even my life wow, I'm a connoisseur, biscuits and gravy, and it was just marvel the secret olano ministry recipe. As a subject for another podcast, I called him Michael because he used to be in charge of policy at the department of labour in the wage, an hour division. He was and the more senior people in the part of government that was supposed to enforce the supreme court decision. I have you heard of this type of programme,

or during your time at the department of labour. I I knew of programmes that look a lot like this that I had no clue that it was so extensive in so widespread until you started doing your reply. redeem. I don't think there's any real ambiguity about what the the law requires. In these instances he sang programs are required to pay workers. They can deduct the cost of room and board from their wages, but no markups, no other charges and at the end of the day, if a rehab really believes work is the best therapy. That's fine! So long as it's complying, with the fair labour standards act and paying people for their work. It's not that they have to eliminate their treatment centres.

and the way they operate, but there's nothing in that treatment model that says you can't pay the workers there's nothing there punic about not pain workers, there's nothing therapeutic about not paying workers get. Ever since the supreme court ruling there's been an explosion in the three have model and in all my years of reporting on this, I couldn't find much evidence that the labour department has used its full fire power to stop it. I reached out to the head of the agents the and the person in charge of their wage in our division. Every time I called or emailed they declined to answer even basic questions. Well, I can't speak for my colleagues, but up to the point where I live. The wage and air division. I had no idea that there was a business model out there in the rehab community. I thought the few instances

We saw something that approximated- this was very isolated, was sort of a one off the labour department mean have known how many rehab like this, where out there during Michael's time, but they did no. It was a problem because of the cell. You armies, long standing, work therapy programmes, they run about a hundred of them around the country and nineteen nineteen. Labour wage and our division told the charity. It had to start paying its rehab workers, minimum wage and overtime. The salvation army is response was to totally deny that their participants were employees, they called them beneficiaries. The salvation army filed the pre emptive law suit and got some politicians on their side and the department of labour backed down. They even added a specific exemption for the salvation army in their handbook going forward. The department would not enforce the law against salvation army.

There are other examples, two and ninety. Ninety four, a former sent a bent filed a filed, a complaint with the department of labour, see never even opened an investigation in two thousand? Thirteen labor was invested the how foundation in Oklahoma, but they stopped after a year. a senator personally intervened that same year in north carolina, one rehab did get in trouble with the department of labour for not paying their workers. The founder of the programme promise to follow the law in the future, but then she went right back to doing the same thing again.

In each of these cases. The department of labour, new, individual rehab or putting people to work without pay, but they didn't succeed in fixing the problem. The trump administration didn't take action against son, a core, and so far it seems the Biden administration is no different. The labour departments still won't say whether they ve taken any action against sent a core or any of the other work based rehab we identified. We could be responding to this emergency with proven methods that could save more lives. But too often we keep doing vests turning people who are seeking treatment into unpaid workers,

The federal government isn't looking into this kind of programme, and nobody could tell us how big this problem is, how many we have are out there, I'm doing in a national survey of recovery programmes with vocational and work there the aspects, so we decided to find out for ourselves and was hoping I might be able to speak with him about the great lakes region for the gulf region, but the palmdale program and facility is like that's coming up next to me. Personally, it was one of the most clever smartest scam. I've ever seen. Somebody come up with This is american rehab from reveal the

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everything in between and they're all in one easy to use software and the best part about. Oh, do all. Oh do apps are integrated helping you get things done faster and more efficiently. So when you think about business, think o due to learn more visit, oh do dot. Com, slash reveal that's o d, o o dotcom sash reveal since this death in two thousand and nine the world has struggled with how Michael Jackson should be remembered in their new podcast think twice michael jackson journalists, Lyonnais fog and jay smooth explore what makes Michael Jackson seemingly on cancel a ball through dozens of original interviews with the people who watched his story unfold firsthand think twice. Michael Jackson reveals a new perspective on his artistry, his controversies and how we should remember him, listen to think twice: Michael Jackson, wherever you get your podcasts or you can binge the entire series ad free on audible or the amazon music app.

I know I know it's hard. You wait all week for this podcast and then it's over and you find yourself wanting more. Let me make a recommendation. The reveal newsletter. It goes behind the scenes into how we make fourthly, stories subscribe now and reveal news dot, org, slash newsletter, from the centre for investigative reporting mp are ex. This is reveal a mallet five years ago shoshone walter star reporting on drug. We have participants who are being sent to work without pay, that story lead to another and another and another, and with each new we have we The question remains: how many more rapidly

show has been on a quest to find out many work base. Rehab are surrounded by a veil of secrecy to get beyond it shall talk to hundreds of former participants about what they experienced a facilities all across the country which he heard bag started to live. If veil, I woke up in the morning and pretty much been the night here can begin I'll joy is just one of hundreds of participants that I talk to you and to recovery ranch in California. That region tommy participants aren't forced to work and that they agree to put their wages towards the costs the programme. So once you wake up, you have a very limited time. You brought your t, git threat and walk, or quarter mile up UNESCO and the freezing cold, Adam Chapelle potter's, we'll ministries in north carolina, and then they beat you.

You come back. You do a bible, thirty, four and thirty minute christian organisations. By the way, when a large number of these programmes by a europe that pilot shop, major private, ruddy, Caleb Brodsky at the how foundation in texas you wake up at six, a m and you go have breakfast, they do a little morning, word meeting to tell you what you're on it, then you head out. We work eight hours a day, Melanie Reinhart at hope, center ministries in tennessee, from seven o'clock to three ten hours a day monday to Saturday. You worked about fifteen for our good god. Forbid rain thought you get a week of rain. You're working for you know different street. There was even a program where a few participants told me they only got one day off every two weeks: cody crouch at the helm foundation in Oklahoma. You are able to work.

None of those we have responded to my questions. The type of work varied from rehab to rehab, but I noticed a lot of programmes operate thrift stores they have heard sinner thrift store None of that money. We never seen any of that money. Hardly one of the biggest organizations out there like this is the salvation army. They require religious participation and unpaid work from picking up, don't eat at items and trucks to sorting them in big warehouses. That's all work, that's typically done by rehab. Participants have shocked at their stores countless times, and I can't help but wonder how many of the staff people who helped me

there as part of their rehab and not getting paid. In a statement, the salvation army said the work helps participants, learn how to live, balanced, productive lives, and they also said they provide spiritual programming, counselling and recreational activities. I also heard about programmes that sent workers to otto detailing, Ops and car washes some places run their own landscaping companies one programme in them Last maiden sold essential oils and around the gulf states. Rehab were making candles and roasting coffee. Some rehab directors reap profits by sending participant

to work at businesses they personally own. In georgia, rehab participants worked at a cotton and pecan farm owned by the director. Many programmes operate more like seneca. Does they provide housing for participants who get sent to work at outside for profit companies? Sometimes massive corporations? There's a multi billion dollar property company called avalon bay communities. They built apartment complexes in the san Francisco bay area. an unpaid rehab. Participants have done construction on those buildings and avalon bay spokesperson said that they were not aware of any laws being broken.

William sonoma has used unpaid rehab workers and its warehouse facility. They never responded to my request for comment and walmart has sold products made by unpaid rehab workers and use workers at a warehouse. Walmart said that a third party logistics provider had managed the workers and Walmart expected them to follow. The law. As I called and emailed all these companies. So many of them responded with what we started to call the sub contractor below off large corporations, mean that they didn't know that subcontractors they had hired or in turn using unpaid rehab workers and their warehouses at their plants and on their construction sites?

The more I learned, the more I felt like I was completely surrounded by this huge unpaid shadow workforce. Knowledge is a word on profit, but it really is profit. Your pay go directly to the m per ten months without any shadow of a doubt Those parties can make money on them dog how much money is hard to say, but here's one example: I got a confidential profit and, statement from a rehab. It had about sixty participants, all men being sent out. make steel and do other jobs. In one month, three have brought in three hundred and twenty seven thousand dollars

that's about four million dollars per year, going mostly to the rehab and not the workers. Meanwhile, in some cases the participants themselves are paying to be there all of clients, pretty much pay thousands of dollars for us to go there, and then you work for his companies for free. If they're paying that much money, then why are you guys? Working for Why do you like getting salary? Hey, that's the thing I I don't. I don't understand why I do it set up that way. You know it's free, labor, that's what they would say. They would say. Work ethic would keep you sober, we're teaching you how to become gentlemen. the re hobbs, aren't the only ones making money some of the key Bunnies that are using these workers are getting a steel with rehab workers. These companies typically dont pay as much as they might for regular employee they'd, always pay for holidays.

Overtime or workers compensation insurance. So sometimes when we have workers do get hurt, they are the ones who end up paying it doesn't matter. If you have a headache, pray about it, you know. If you broke your finger breakthrough, it it'll go away. The last of always, there are still there was aged. Twenty routes were from a green. I grant must hold. A lot of people have hurt their backs on the job. One person walked away with brain damage. At least three people have died I've, seen medical records and other reports confirming all of these incidents. Some workers got hurt because they don't get the right training or protective equipment, whether from the rehab,

business or from outside company, where they were sent to work. In some cases, their conditions would only get worse because they felt they had no choice but to keep working day of absolutely burn down every structure and their life in their life, and they have nothing nowhere to go nothing current. You get out funds. You don't have another option. If you don't have insurance or you're facing a prison sentence, these rehabs could be the best option you have, but sometimes this kind of treatment just leaves people worse off than when they came in the first place at com. I felt have trapped with police, took a real mental toll on me. I felt like I was a slave there. It's almost like that. Try to literally brain. Why shield to me personally, it was one of the most clever smartest scams, everything somebody come up with.

how many rehab are out there, putting people to work with no pay. The federal government doesn't track it. In fact, nobody has counted how many there are so we set out to do it ourselves and the only way to figure it out was to make phone calls lots to participants, like you, ve heard, and to rehab serves a mighty shot. A walter I'm a reporter with her veal shanna Walter, I'm a reporter, withdrew the allied on tuesday, twelve thirty. On thursday afternoon, we created a short survey about seven or eight questions, I'm doing in a national survey of recovery programmes with vocational and work. Thereupon aspects I told to ever I spoke with that it would take no more than ten minutes was hoping. I might be able to speak with him about the great lakes region for the gulf.

In general, the palmdale programme on facility is like some programs will want to tell me way more information than I was asking for. So I just listen and take notes the rest. The time it took some product that here too How long has it been operating about how many people go through the programmes every year? Can you walk me through what a day in the programme looks like like? What's the daily schedule like, what's it consist of what time is a bedtime? Can you tell me a little bit about some of the skills, their learning our jobs there doing. I spent months speaking these calls in a window its booth at the office at my desk at home, or on my couch excuse me, I'm losing my voice a little that purpose. A lot of programmes would talk about the value of work and what it teaches participants or how job training was preparing people for life on the outside. But when it comes,

time to talk about whether or not people get to keep their pay. What does the programme cost about the residential programme? The programme so just sort of claim up hello, hello? How are you there for every successful call I made? I probably had another five calls that what absolute be nowhere over the course of a full year of calling only a fraction of rehab. Read the participate in the survey. Most programmes were just not trance.

Erin about how they operate when I tallied up all these rehab in march before the corona virus started shutting down work all over the country, I found three hundred rehab facilities in the united states that required unpaid work. That's more than sixty thousand people per year. Sixty thousand people when show finished her count back in two thousand and twenty. She found that some of those rehabs offer a nominal stipend of like twenty dollars a week or a one time bonus of fifteen hundred dollars a graduation, but none of those workers receive anything close to minimum wage for years. The

at epidemic was the public health emergencies, but as the corona virus spread around the world, we started to hear how it was affecting people inside we like cynical. Obviously they don't care about the health of everyone in the place because they would have both in order to us say it not in an out and out- and now me did you cared about our well being wouldn't do knew tat when one public health urgency runs into another view here. Earlier cases come up now so many He and I were out here now my life is that, were it that's coming up one american rehab from reveal the.

Hi, my name is Michael Montgomery and I'm a producer, and reporter here at revealed, reveal is a non profit. User innovation and we depend on support from our listeners, don't eat. Today. Reveal news dot, org, slash, donate. Thank you so much. from the centre Investigative reporting in p r ex this is reveal an outlet show found malaria is among the three hundred rehab. She count long days and dangerous jobs were common, but every now and then shall we hear about a rehab that surprised even her. Did you know much about the programme at the time? You know anything about it a judge order, Brendan Earl to serve a year at work. We have called synergy, foundation in tennessee and brendan says the programme sent

well to do jobs like janitorial work at a hospital. We had to clean up like blood and stuff, which I feel comfortable doing because you're supposed to have like a hazmat team supposed to be doing that stuff. But as next king was even greedier, cleaning up the Memphis zoo. Sometimes this involved carrying dead animals to the incinerator, and once- and this is real Brendan had to move a drugged bear yeah. We did it, take people to pick it up wow. What was that like? It was pretty sketchy considering the fact. they like they like rolled over and grabbed at you a little bit, but it was still under. It was just asleep, but it was just scary. Brennan says the worst: jobs would go to rehab workers, because, while they didn't have a choice, it was literally like one of them situated work light

I was never able to say no, you know, try yeah, I tried to say no a couple of times they're like well. I guess, if that's the case, you can just go home, I'm like well, I can't go home or keep down going back to jail and then I'll go to prison, carry a bear, or go to jail. When we heard brendan story, we thought that's an impossible situation, but at the beginning of the pandemic, things got worse. While americans were sheltering in place to avoid getting sick workplace, we have like the synergy foundation where branding went, we're still sending people out to job sites? Synergy had participants clean the factory for the major food distributor? U s foods! We ask that company for response, but they never back to us- neither did synergy in the middle of a global pandemic, other region,

we're doing the same thing show learned that sent a corps was also turning participants into unpaid, essential workers at the pandemic, spread in march. In April. I started to hear about new concerns from senna corporate recipients at their facility in fort worth. Texas. Sorry go ahead, be your thing I reach brittany. Cardinia is on the phone, oh yeah, they don't enforce. It's a distance thing or anything like that, or they were making us go to work. They were going to a factory called cps packaging to make plastic bottles for cleaning products, as such the bottles and put them into boxes were going to yeah you're supposed to wear gloves I have the they didn't, have any gloves for the past. They didn't have any game for the past few days they haven't had any of several santa core participants told me they went without basic protective acquit

men in a statement, seneca denied that saying it was following. Local state and federal guidelines related to the corona virus, see K ass. The bottling company said they kept worker six feet apart sanitizing surfaces and limiting visitors van on that same time to workers at that factory, tested positive for the virus, some senate, corporatism and found that out while they were on shift their, they wanted to leave then go back to the rehab but sent a core wanted participants to keep working later on staff told them may be punished if they refuse to go to work. The son, a core participants were shuttled to and from the factory in a pact work fan they left in thirty person, rooms and bunk bets and brittany said somebody inside sent a corps was already sick there, the the girl there there been, I just found out last night that suits them

A a meeting room that has been set up for somebody got sick he's been in there with one hundred and two fever. For the past two or three days, centocor put the woman in a conference room by herself, then others started getting sick. Cena court kept sending people out to work. Obviously they don't care about the health of everyone in the place. If they would have closed the doors and made us stay in and not finish in and out in and out and out I mean have you cared about our well being you wouldn't do that After I wrote about all of this, the texas health and human services commission open an investigation into the rehab. I learned that at least one participants at the forward son a core had tested positive for covert nineteen, while about ten others were being quarantined according to a leaked document.

Received staff accused participants who are sick of being lazy and trying to get out of work as cases around texas continued to climb sent a course. Director of nursing was downplaying the threat of the virus and an email to staff. He called media reports hyperbole and the data exaggerated then send a course staff started getting sick to an employee said they were ordered not to talk to residence about it and that if any staffer talk tour reporter they be fired on the spot. After I first wrote about santa core, I kept asking them for comment, but they repeatedly declined and eventually hired crisis pr firm. As we were getting close to publishing the series, I gave him a final chance to respond to a detailed list of questions almost half or about problems at their batten, rouge facility or tim row, and chris

cool when the pr firm wrote me in an email that singapore was too focused on their clients and the pandemic. Answer my questions. The next day, I got big news hey great susana. How are you doing a very prosperity and under the water can you know kara. And woke up feeling blast she been living at santa core and batten rouge from us fifteen months she was in the re entry phase, when you get a job and actually get paid, while still living inside the rehab she was working as a waitress in paying sent a core five hundred dollars a month in rent and she felt like she was doing pretty good. For the first time in a row time then around nine, a m on a wednesday in late march, twenty twenty executives from Senegal, including ceo bill, bailey called kara, and about sixty other participants into a meeting room to break the news they got you guys. I figured out

it is possible, sent corps was shutting down the long term. We have the facility in batten, rouge, kara and other participants were told they had about forty eight hours to pack up and get out I don't have any family here, nobody here, so you know I was just carnival. My god. Where am I going? Go patients yelled in crime? some sudden shock former staffers said: most of them were told to mediately pack up and leave them weren't allowed to counsel comfort or even say goodbye to clients- and this is back when coven nineteen was exploding in louisiana, the state had one of the fastest growing rates of new cases in the world. You hear all these gators come up now to many in Louisiana and we're out here. They put it out during us to try to find a place to live like now. My life is that route

as residents of santa course scrambled to find another place to go. Wendy do ya. Son called his family in a panic not about have dealt out as in all that good. You can add that their rights are so they were our bandying and why Pauline people, because they give, though them There's just been, I guess putting them out on the streets. I mean they're, going to be helpful at wendy's. First thought is true, is centocor actually closing. She called them to confirm. There was some confusion at the front desk. Everyone seemed to be taken by surprise. I haven't back on- and I don't know what's going on in this moment- she had no way to reach him and she was worried sick that her son was already back on the streets where he could relapse.

Heroin studies show that when people leave rehab after a long period of abstinence, they're at a much higher risk of overdosing and dying because their tolerance is much lower, wendy was deeply concerned for her son. It's a horrible situation to be in. I mean it's just it's heartbreaking. It is just not a life that you want to live for him or for for people that love you and, though something like this just make it a martin center court kept two employees around to help people and they did find some places for people to go. They also offered to transfer participants to center court facilities in texas, but with such short notice, the staff was overwhelmed and for participants who were court ordered the offer to

as for what's an empty gesture, since they couldn't cross state lines, care of herself was still on probation. I still can't leave the state of louisiana. Do you at least give me a week or two weeks notice? They were walking. We have sent a core with no money, food transportation or a place to live. The last I talk with her right after the closure. Kara was crashing on a friend's families couch while looking for an apartment Recently, her back from wendy, she says her son was living on the streets for a couple days. Then they were finally all to get him into a sober living home in a statement? Assent of course, spokesperson called the closure temporary,

Instead, it was because of declining demand for long term treatment in louisiana and related concerns over corona virus impacting economic operations that temporary closure soon became permanent, sent a core sold the building. During my years of reporting on sent a core, I have tried so many times to set up an interview with their ceo bill bailey. In the end, he wouldn't talk to me, but a few weeks after sent a course abrupt closure of their batten rouge programme bill bailey did grant a television interview to see w.

Benign morning dose in Houston, Texas. Thank you so much for what you're doing man. Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity today sure about our mission or cause for center core foundation bill and the reporter are standing about six feet. Apart, he's wearing a crisp white shirt, no tie and a blazer they're talking in a reception area with a big centocor sign on the wall, so tell us a little bit about what you are seeing and how you've seen increase and people reaching out for help. We actually have the last four weeks. The first two weeks we saw about a ten to twenty percent increase of people calling for assistance. The last couple of weeks has really leveled off, so we're still now seen between twenty eight and thirty two admissions a day into one of ours in facilities. This is the version of reality is sent a core presented how they like to frame what's happening. I really wanted to ask bill bailey. Why do they

tell us. There was declining demand for long term treatment in louisiana. When we know the pandemic has unleashed arise and fatal drug overdoses across the country. Why were they pushing vulnerable residents out into homelessness during a pandemic? Why were they still making participants go to work? And, lastly, for anyone out there that may be struggling? What is your message to them? There is hope there is a safe place to receive treatment today. Don't wait, don't think that you have to wait until the virus has passed now's the time to come. we're here for you in this whole interview, bilbil ain't. Never mentions that sent a core had just shuddered its batten rouge facility, Chris Coon spent eighteen months. Their work up to twelve hour days, he bent rebar into steel cages. Pressure washed pigeon,

pull off of cowering grain silos even Keaton event. The governor attended back in the dorms. He kissed my side of a sock drawer and just tried to hold it together. I decided to call chris to let him know that sent a court was closing its. worse than you ever happen to thank god and guide. Why do you say that how in ways that, based on my worst enemy, I told him that I just sent a list of questions to senegal some about his own injury. I also told him sent a course said they had to close, because it was costing too much to stay open with so The empty beds during the pandemic economic concerns drawn essays, buys and say there is no need for long jar. As a exam in Louisiana, let me tell you: there is some junkies ear that needs a long arm treatment millennia,

told you remain just a word I also called up tim row who we heard from the very beginning of this series, apparently that a core is shutting down their bad rouge facility. Tim fled the bat enriched facility and called his sister penny rollings for help. He was glad they were shutting down, but he was also a little concerned. Some probably I don't know if they have any like any other place to go. I feel bad threw down because some of those people They don't have a choice. My last calls was, with TIM sister penny she's, the one who first asked me how this could possibly be legal and weather

Other people were having the same. Disturbing experiences are family. I told her what happened? I mean I think, that grey in the sense that I don't think anybody should have to go through what my brother, why Were there in an ideal world government agencies would step up and ensure that we have programmes are not exploiting people for financial gain, but that has happened. there's no national agency responsible for making sure all rehab. There are safe and providing actual treatment, there's just the department of labour which is to make sure working people get paid. I asked penny what she'd say to them if she could but she didn't really have a message for them. Instead, she, an indictment on the tyres system of work based rehab in this country, you're killing them you're, killing people sending them to these places where they may have. No

can't we are selling a why the lie, we're gonna, get better, no you're, not you're, gonna use that, human beings are like a piece of christ and throw them away and then get the next one to fill his shoes, like americans, have struggled with opiate addiction for over a century. At this point, we have a good idea of what works, but instead of offering people proven methods of treatment, and increasing access to that treatment. American president's and politicians judges. Regulators have allowed an age old, Eric and ideal to prosper, hard work cures, all the gap between the rich and poor is why, I people are feeling more isolated. More desperate

thousands more likely they become caught in the gears of this rehab machine caught in a cycle of fear and pain, creed and profits. Until one day, some people find their cure and for others thing just stops the

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when we initially ran series, it was the first time many people had heard about this kind of treatment and a few things have changed. Many companies using we have workers cancelled their contracts. Former workers and rehab participants themselves filed a dozen lawsuits. Many are still making their way through federal courts. Following this podcast gas senators called for congressional investigation into work base rehab they receive federal funding. That investigation is now under way. in the meantime, cena core is still receiving taxpayer money. Last year they received almost four million in loan forgiveness from the federal government and more than ten million in government contracts in two thousand and twenty one centocor course: yo, announced they were ending their long running workplace treatment programmes, but this

I love rehab isn't going away. People are still contacting us about being exploited in their rehab programs. The overdose crisis is worse than ever, and people are still being sent to these programs. If you're considering treatment for yourself or a loved one, we put together some including a database of all the rehab we found around the country they use unpaid labour. We also have a list of questions that you should ask any we have you might be considering you can find all of that on our website, revealing is that a work, slash american rehab again, that's right, news dot, org, slash american region. Thanks for listening to american rehab, you can hear the force theories on our podcast, just search american rehab on apple podcasts, spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts and be sure to subscribe to reveal while you're there

the american rehab reporting team show Shanna Walter lost our chaskey, an eye trees, kind of roger bread. Myers is our editor Amy Leah Harris helped us report the story from the beginning and launch this project. We had additional editor support from not as a keynote Andy donoghue, esther kaplan and production help from w H. Why? Why in philadelphia, special thanks to careless, so young long quinn, louis and highly swimmer fact checking I rose marie ho pretoria. Bear nets, he is our general council. Our production managers, Amy the great mustafa original score and sound designed by the dynamic, do o j breezy to Jim briggs of fernando my man, yo router, our post production team is the justice league, and this week it includes just our ringer catherine stier, Martinez, Steven rest gone and clear, see note mullet are digital producer. Sarah

or see you as kaser camp wallet. Sue me ago, was our editor in chief and our executive producer is Kevin Sullivan. A theme music is by colorado, like support for reveals, provided the river and David Logan foundation. The John D and catherine t macarthur foundation, the Jonathan Logan family foundation, the ford foundation, the high sing simons foundation, the hellman foundation, the democracy fund and the in as much foundation reveal is a co production of the center for investigative reporting and p r x m l leads and member. There is always more to the story.

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