・・・・・This fight is about more than one case.
It’s about:
⤷Calling them out for dangerous and deceptive practices.
⤷Demanding transparency, especially when rehab centers are posing as full medical facilities — and changing their promises based on what’s convenient, not what’s safe.
⤷Ending the silence these corporations rely on to keep profiting from pain.
⚖️ Case Overview: Lawsuit Over Client Death
The lawsuit was filed by Kathy Deem, mother of 23-year-old Cody Arbuckle, who died in July 2017 while at a Solutions Treatment residential rehab in Las Vegas.
➤The Clark County Coroner determined Arbuckle died from loperamide toxicity (Imodium overdose), a fact added to the lawsuit and reported by state.
➤Arbuckle was the seventh client to die in AAC's residential programs, although we are convinced there are more that arbitration has sealed from public record.
It is understood that despite Solutions Recovery’s promise of 24/7 care, Cody Arbuckle and his roommate, Steven, were able to leave the facility unsupervised and obtained Imodium (Loperamide) — an over-the-counter anti-diarrheal medication that, when misused in high doses, can be used to chase a high or suppress withdrawal, and is sometimes abused by individuals with eating disorders.
╭┈➤They were just 23 years old, and had been sent to what appeared online to be a 5-star treatment center, marketed as a place of healing and safety. Cody’s mother believed, as any parent would, that this was the step that could finally help her son recover from the disease of addiction. Her insurance paid for his treatment. The facility’s website at the time (its language has since been changed) promised a level of care that would prevent exactly this type of tragedy. Nevertheless, similar deaths have continued to occur.
╭┈➤After obtaining and ingesting the Imodium, both young men returned to the facility. Steven was rushed to the ICU, where he spent five days in a coma due to liver failure. Cody, who began vomiting and showing signs of distress, was reportedly dismissed by staff. Despite being visibly unwell, he was left unsupervised overnight. One nurse later claimed she saw “his chest rising and falling,” but offered no further intervention. By the time anyone checked again — nearly 24 hours later — Cody had died.
╭┈➤Residents say they raised concerns but were ignored. In his final hours, he was placed, while sick and vulnerable, in an office space belonging to an executive (Chris Angel), and later isolated in a so-called detox unit referred to by some as “The Shoe” — a space that did not appear to meet proper medical detox standards.
╭┈➤Cody’s mother, Kathy Deem, has shared her grief publicly — describing days when she didn’t know how she could go on, but found comfort in what felt like signs from her son: clouds shaped like butterflies, hearts in the sky. Cody was one of two sons she has lost to addiction. It has taken her five long years of heartbreak and legal struggle just to begin to find some measure of justice.
╭┈➤We urge you to read the linked articles about Cody’s case, especially since many of them are buried by search algorithms and don’t appear easily on Google. These stories matter — and they deserve to be seen.
The rehab center allegedly:
➤Misrepresented medical capabilities and operated without proper staffing experience
➤Used commission incentives to enroll clients, risking inappropriate admissions.
➤Provided inadequate medical oversight, leaving clients unsupervised for hours.
➤Allowed free access to potentially dangerous medications like Imodium in client areas.
Systemic Failures and Negligence
The lawsuit filed by Cody’s mother, Kathy Deem, alleges that Solutions Recovery engaged in numerous troubling practices:
►False Advertising and Improper Licensing: AAC advertised itself as providing comprehensive medical treatment for addiction, but regulators found that Solutions Recovery was not licensed to provide many of these services. This misrepresentation puts vulnerable patients at risk of receiving inadequate care.
►Profit-Driven Admissions: Intake staff were paid commissions to enroll clients, incentivizing quantity over quality and potentially leading to inappropriate placements.
►Inadequate Medical Oversight: Despite claims of "luxury" amenities like a pool and equine therapy, the facility was reportedly staffed primarily by untrained personnel and interns rather than licensed medical professionals. The basics were not provided, ie, trained staff and proper surveillance.
►Negligent Monitoring: Cody was left unsupervised for extended periods, including a reported 14-hour window after being moved to a detox house — a critical lapse for a vulnerable patient. This happened to another patient who passed at this facility the first day she arrived from alcohol poisoning: Joanna Leeming.
Legal and Ethical Concerns
➤Courts have questioned whether intoxicated patients had the mental capacity to sign contracts such as arbitration agreements at intake, raising serious consent and fairness issues.
Consent and Capacity:
➤Another alarming issue raised by related reporting involves the validity of contracts signed by intoxicated rehab patients. In many cases, patients admitted under the influence of substances like fentanyl or hydromorphone are asked to sign legal agreements and other binding contracts without fully understanding the consequences.
➤This was a central legal question in Cody’s case, where a judge ruled that his intoxicated state likely impaired his mental capacity to consent, rendering such contracts potentially unenforceable.
Nevada Current: Do Intoxicated Rehab Patients Have the Mental Capacity to Enter Contracts?
Nevada’s regulatory system failed to inspect the correct facilities after complaints, and the state currently does not require reporting of deaths in non-medical rehab centers, contributing to a lack of transparency and accountability.
Wider Industry Patterns
➤AAC has faced multiple lawsuits and scrutiny over client deaths, including a $7 million verdict in California.
➤Investigations into “body broker” practices and profit-driven admissions highlight systemic issues across the addiction treatment industry.
Regulatory and Industry-Wide Failures:
➤Nevada regulators failed to inspect the correct facility after complaints were filed, a critical oversight that allowed dangerous conditions to persist unaddressed.
➤Nevada law does not require mandatory reporting of deaths in non-medical residential rehab facilities, creating a dangerous transparency gap that hinders accountability.
➤The larger addiction treatment industry, including AAC, has faced multiple wrongful-death lawsuits, including a recent $7 million verdict in California linked to similar failures.
➤Investigations into “body broker” referral practices and the profit-driven addiction treatment model expose systemic incentives that prioritize enrollment numbers over patient safety.
Why This Matters
These tragedies expose how vulnerable individuals seeking help are often met with under-resourced, profit-driven systems that fail to protect them. Our petition calls for:
►Mandatory reporting of all deaths in addiction treatment facilities.
►Stricter licensing and oversight to ensure medical adequacy.
►Transparency and accountability in admissions and care practices.
►Protection for patients’ rights, including fair contracting processes.
Take Action
↗Please share this update and sign the petition if you haven’t yet. Together, we can push for reforms that save lives and safeguard those seeking recovery. The death of Cody Arbuckle is not an isolated incident but part of a disturbing pattern of neglect and exploitation within parts of the addiction treatment industry. Vulnerable individuals seeking help deserve safe, evidence-based care — not to be subjected to unregulated, profit-driven systems with minimal oversight.
➤In Canada, addiction is legally recognized as a disability. While we may not be in Canada, this raises an important question: are many people in our own communities being exploited because of a condition that other countries acknowledge as an illness? If that's the case, what steps can we take to prevent addiction—and when it does take hold, how can we ensure that treatment is safe, supportive, and focused on healing rather than harm?
➤People don’t respond to legalese — they respond to raw, human truth. These are not real medical facilities — they are businesses using corporate marketing to make vulnerable families think they’re safe
Thank you for standing with us.
#CodyDeservedBetter #RehabNotRetail #ExposeAAC
https://americanaddictioncenters.org/media/aac-michael-cartwright-on-sen-warrens-care-act