Washington’s Substance Use Recovery Services Advisory Committee (SURSAC) is trying to distance itself from a controversial set of drug policy recommendations made by a workgroup it helped create which include proposals for the state to operate a “buyers club” to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine under the guise of “safer supply,” have sparked public outrage and intense media coverage.
Journalist Carleen Johnson of The Center Square, who first broke the story, appeared on The Ari Hoffman Show on Talk Radio 570 KVI to push back on what she described as SURSAC’s “damage control” efforts. Johnson explained that committee chair Tony Walton referenced her reporting in a recent SURSAC meeting, appearing to accuse her of spreading misinformation, only to later walk that accusation back when challenged directly.
WA officials distancing themselves from policy recommendations made including operating a "buyers club" for hard drugs under the guise of "safer supply"
“They didn’t like the press so they tried to distance themselves & tried to throw those of us who covered it under the bus” pic.twitter.com/mvuLf9vbac
— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) July 14, 2025
The Backpedal
During Monday’s committee meeting, Walton told SURSAC members there had been “a number of news articles” covering the Safe Supply Workgroup’s recommendations and that media coverage was “inaccurate” and “mischaracterized” the committee’s role. He included links to several articles in the meeting chat, including Johnson’s.
“I saw that he linked my article and said there was misinformation,” Johnson told Hoffman. “So I sent my article directly to him and to the Health Care Authority and asked: What exactly was wrong?”
The response came the next day — not from Walton himself, but from a staffer at the Washington Health Care Authority, who admitted Johnson’s reporting was accurate. According to Johnson, “They said, ‘Oh no, we didn’t mean to imply your article was wrong, he just linked all the articles that had discussed the story.’”
Passing the Buck
SURSAC has attempted to draw a sharp line between itself and the Safe Supply Workgroup, even though the committee recommended its creation and that it was funded through a $300,000 state appropriation tied to opioid settlement funds. Members of the workgroup were appointed by then-Governor Jay Inslee’s office and included harm-reduction advocates, addiction service providers, and individuals with lived experience.
SURSAC Chair Walton emphasized the group had been disbanded after it submitted its recommendations, which included controversial ideas like supervised injection sites, non-prescription dispensaries for addictive drugs, and the creation of a buyers club to distribute substances under controlled conditions.
Johnson wasn’t convinced.
“They didn’t like the press they got, so they tried to distance themselves and throw reporters under the bus,” she said on the air. “Too bad, so sad — these were your appointed people, these were your recommendations. You just don’t like that the truth got out.”
Political Fallout
The controversy has had political ramifications. Hoffman and Johnson speculated that the plan may have been intended for quiet introduction into the next legislative session — a move likely disrupted once media coverage gained traction statewide and nationally.
“This went Uber national,” Hoffman said. “And Bob Ferguson is now being painted as a drug dealer — because if the state distributes fentanyl and meth, what else would you call it?”
As Washington’s Attorney General, Ferguson oversees communication for state agencies and is a candidate for governor. Hoffman and Johnson both suggested the administration had an interest in tamping down public backlash.
“It feels like they were planning to propose this to lawmakers, and once they got caught, they cried ‘fake news,’” Hoffman added.
Bipartisan Pushback
Even Rep. Mari Leavitt (D-Steilacoom), a new member of SURSAC, voiced frustration during the meeting. She asked repeatedly whether the Safe Supply Workgroup was part of SURSAC and who exactly it reported to. Her questions were left largely unanswered.
“She followed up with me after the meeting and said she wasn’t pleased,” Johnson reported. “She promised to go back to Chair Walton and get clarification.”
What Comes Next?
Though the Safe Supply Workgroup has been officially disbanded, its recommendations are still public — and could resurface in legislative proposals. Critics fear that despite SURSAC’s attempts to disassociate, the radical policy ideas remain very much in play.
“This story isn’t going away,” Johnson warned. “The public deserves to know if their tax dollars are going to fund drug distribution under the label of harm reduction.”
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