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Collin County, Texas Adopts Hythiam's PROMETA(R) Treatment Program

Posted on: Monday, 17 September 2007, 09:00 CDT

Hythiam, Inc. (NASDAQ:HYTM) today announced the adoption of the PROMETA® Treatment Program for the treatment of the methamphetamine and cocaine dependent individuals within the probation, parole and re-entry programs in Collin County, Texas. This announcement follows the completion of a successful pilot evaluation within this felony-offender population. Participants in the pilot were the more difficult to treat, general felony offenders, and not those within an intensive, supervised drug court program. At a total population of about 500,000 people, Collin County has placed about 11,000 persons on probation alone in the past year, a large number of these sentencings attributed to drug-related crimes.

"This pilot evaluation of the PROMETA Treatment Program has exceeded both our expectations and the results we have seen from other substance dependence treatments," said Justice Charles Sandoval of Collin County's 380th Judicial District Court. "This is a difficult, non-compliant felony population that historically consumes a lot of our resources. Our hope is that deploying the PROMETA Treatment Program on a wider scale will allow us to better manage this group and reduce the associated criminal recidivism and economic burden."

Of the 19 individuals that participated in the pilot program, 74% (14) did not test positive for drug use during the pilot. Of the 218 drug screens that were collected, 96% (210) were negative for drugs. Twenty individuals initially volunteered for the pilot, one of whom was excluded by the court as not suitable to participate. One individual who did not test positive for drugs was incarcerated on a non-drug charge, five individuals were re-incarcerated for drug use, and two individuals who had not tested positive for drugs had outstanding warrants at the end of the pilot.

"We are well aware that today there are some 5 million people in need of treatment within the U.S. Criminal Justice System, and that the penal system has had a lot of difficulty managing criminal offenders who are addicted to drugs," said Terren Peizer, Hythiam's Chairman and CEO. "The ongoing momentum we are experiencing in the deployment of the PROMETA Treatment Program is a result of the desperate need to counter economic and social burdens imposed upon communities by this population. We are pleased to be involved in this collaborative effort, one that includes participation from state, judicial, and law enforcement programs within the State of Texas, to bring the PROMETA Treatment Program as a rehabilitation option to this population. Going forward, we expect these pathways we have established in visionary states such as Texas and Washington to serve as templates for the widespread utilization of the PROMETA Treatment Program throughout the country."

Collin County, which comprises both Texas' 67th congressional district and its 380th judicial district, will move forward with implementing and funding the program. Justice Charles Sandoval of the 380th judicial district and Jerry Madden, Chairman of the House Corrections Committee and Congressional representative for the 67th congressional district, both provided guidance and oversight for the pilot. Representative Madden has been instrumental in procuring an initial state legislative allocation of $2 million for Texas PROMETA Treatment Program funding in other jurisdictions. This announcement also follows the recent adoption of the PROMETA Treatment Program in Denton County, Texas.

About the PROMETA® Treatment Program

Hythiam's PROMETA® Treatment Program is designed for use by healthcare providers seeking to treat individuals diagnosed with dependencies to alcohol, cocaine or methamphetamine, as well as combinations of these drugs. The PROMETA® Treatment Program includes nutritional supplements, FDA-approved oral and IV medications used off-label and separately administered in a unique dosing algorithm, as well as psychosocial or other recovery-oriented therapy chosen by the patient and his or her treatment provider. As a result, PROMETA® represents an innovative approach to managing alcohol, cocaine, or methamphetamine dependence that is designed to address physiological, nutritional, and psychosocial aspects of the disease, and is thereby intended to offer patients an opportunity to achieve sustained recovery. To learn more, please visit www.prometainfo.com.

About Hythiam, Inc.

Hythiam, Inc. provides behavioral health management services to health plans, employers, criminal justice, and government agencies through a network of licensed and company managed providers. The company approaches the management of behavioral health disorders with a focus on using the latest medical and health technology towards improved outcomes and out-patient treatment. Hythiam also researches, develops, licenses and commercializes innovative and proprietary physiological, nutritional, and behavioral treatment programs. Hythiam offers disease management for substance dependence built around its proprietary PROMETA® Treatment Program for alcoholism and dependence to stimulants. The PROMETA® Treatment Program, which integrates behavioral, nutritional, and medical components, is available through both licensed treatment providers and company managed PROMETA® Centers. Hythiam does not practice medicine or manufacture, distribute, or sell any medications and has no relationship with any manufacturers or distributors of medications used in the PROMETA® Treatment Program. For further information, please visit www.hythiam.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for statements of historical fact, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking and made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements reflect numerous assumptions and involve a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company's control that may cause actual results to differ materially from stated expectations. These risk factors include, among others, limited operating history and lack of statistically significant formal research studies, the risk that treatment programs might not be effective, difficulty in developing, exploiting and protecting proprietary technologies, intense competition and substantial regulation in the healthcare industry; and additional risks factors as discussed in the reports filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available on its website at http://www.sec.gov.

Source: Business Wire

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