Bangor detox facility closes after $1.2 million funding shortfall

Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness announced on Friday, Oct. 30, that it will shut down its Cedar Road Detox Facility in Bangor. The organization cited a $1.2 million budget shortfall caused by the loss of state and federal funding as the primary reason for the closure.

The 10-bed facility serves approximately 500 clients each year who are undergoing withdrawal from opioids, alcohol, and stimulants. Its patient base includes both Indigenous and nonindigenous individuals, many of whom are covered by MaineCare.

Lisa Sockabasin, co-CEO of the health organization, stated that the center will stop accepting new patients immediately. Current residents will remain in the facility until they are medically cleared for discharge. Sockabasin expects all beds to be empty by the end of the following week.

The closure comes with immediate personnel changes. On Friday, the organization notified 25 employees that they would be laid off. This reduction in staff follows a separate layoff of 20 workers that occurred one month prior.

Sockabasin noted that the decision was difficult for the staff, who understand the local impact of losing these specific treatment slots. She described the employees as individuals who deeply believe in their daily work and recognize the harm caused by the absence of available detox beds.

The medically assisted withdrawal program costs $3 million annually to operate. Historically, the facility received $1 million in state reimbursement, with federal grants and private donors covering the remaining $2 million gap.

In early 2025, the Trump administration halted numerous federal grants, cutting off the funding that covered more than half of the program's operations. Sockabasin said the organization eventually recovered some of these funds, but the process consumed time and resources that could have been used elsewhere. The recovered amount was insufficient to sustain the program's full operations.

Earlier this year, the federal government delayed the opening of new grant applications. When the applications finally opened, Sockabasin said the system was flooded because many organizations had lost other grant funding. She noted that compiling each federal grant requires more than 40 hours of work. The organization submitted 12 grant applications in a single month but received funding for only some of them.

Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness serves four federally recognized tribes in five communities: the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, the Mi’kmaq Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Indian Township, the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point, and the Penobscot Nation.

The organization provides a range of services, including medication-assisted treatment, case management, a peer-run recovery center, housing security, HIV testing, and a home visiting program for Indigenous children and families. Sockabasin indicated that the organization may need to consider additional closures, such as its recovery housing program.