Firet U, S. Narootic Farm,
Lexington, Kentucky.

September 16, 1925,

Asst. Surgeon General %..L+ Treadway,
Washington, D. C.

Dear Dr. Treadway!

Con earn our telephone conversation of today about Petient

whe wae discharged from here on his
denend September 13, 1935, and wired his family for funds, a slip-
up occurred in this in that neither Dr. Ossenfort nor I were notified
when he want out that he had no funds, As soon as found that the
man was in town without funds, I took the matter up and issued Station
Order No. 6, a copy of which is enclosed. This order, as you will see,
is also intended to slow up the discharge of voluntary patients from
here that we do not consider to be cured or to have received maximum
benefit from treatment.

We will hold some voluntary case against his dazand as suggested
by you for a test ease in the courts. In doing this, we will, of
wurse, select a case whose relatives are strongly in favor of his
staying here, There is sueh a case coming up now that is favorable
for the test if he should carry his threat out to employ a lewyer and
get a writ.

It seems quite clear that our voluntary patients are going:to cive
us more trouble than the prisoners. They know, or rather feel, thet we
have no legal authority to hold them and, of course, when you release
one through necessity it gives the others ean idea that they also can go.
The treatment they are getting here is much better, of course, than
they were used to on the outside where, either in sanitariumsa or hos-
pitals, they would be kept for 10 daye or two weeks and then be dis~
charged. We heve gotten all of our patients off the drug repidly and
have had then off at least a month before they left. This gives ea
reasonable chance to those who sincerely desire to remain cured, but I
perhaps should etete here that the staff feels that the majority of the
voluntary patients we have let go are of the type who were hopeless in
any event.

As I stated over the telephone todey I have been giving this matter
of premature @isharge of voluntary patiats some thought and decided
~~ 2-=

to request the Bureau to look into the legal side of the cuestion with
‘the idea of having, if possible, a lew passed whereby voluntary patients
eould commit themselves in such a way that there would be no doubt of
our authority to held them for a specified length of time. I think we
should make this ebout nine monthe and have a provision in the law where-~
by we could diecharge a patient sooner if in our judgment it was advis~
able either be@ause of a eure or beceuse the patient turned out to be a
detriment to the station. I believe that many voluntary retients would
consent to coumit themselves for this length of time and, of course, if
they knew we had en absolute legal hold on then they weuld not begin to
fret about getting out as soon as their physica] health was partially
restored.

Even if voluntary patients incist upon going before we think they
should go,the treatment of them here for chort periods is desirable
for it gives us an opportunity to study drug addiction in the withdrawal
peridd and thus far these are the only patients for such studies that we
have had. It is aleo of interest psychologically to note the reaction
of these patients during the period of withdrawal and immedistely sfter~
Ward. —

Very truly yours,
Lawrence Kolb,

Kedieal Director,
Medieal Officer in Charge