On July 10, 2026, U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled in favor of the Salvation Army (TSA) in the case of Tassinari v. Salvation Army, affirming the organization's First Amendment right to ban the use of methadone and buprenorphine by participants in its Adult Rehabilitation Centers (ARCs).

The Salvation Army operates 29 ARCs across the United States, providing housing and basic necessities for six to twelve months to individuals referred to as "beneficiaries." During their stay, beneficiaries live on-site and engage in full-time "work therapy," such as processing donated goods for resale at Salvation Army thrift stores.

TSA regards ARCs as "residential churches" and considers their operation a form of religious practice. The highest priority of these centers is to bring beneficiaries into a personal relationship with God, serving individuals with social, emotional, and spiritual needs who have lost the ability to cope with their problems independently.

While beneficiaries are not required to be Salvationists and may practice their own religions on their own time, they must acknowledge that the Salvation Army is a church and agree to participate in Salvationist religious activities as a condition of participation.

A core tenet of the Salvation Army's religious beliefs is abstinence from alcohol and addictive substances. The organization sincerely believes that long-term use of narcotics to treat addiction is not true rehabilitation and that "abstinence and the power of God unto salvation is the only form of successful rehabilitation."

Applicants with positive urine tests for prohibited drugs generally must detox before admission, although some exceptions exist if the applicant has abstained for 48 hours prior. Notably, at TSA's Harbor Light Centers, the use of methadone and buprenorphine is permitted when medically appropriate and consistent with state and federal guidelines.

Plaintiffs in the case argued that TSA's policy violated Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Fair Housing Act by preventing access to medication for opioid-use disorder. However, the court upheld TSA's policy, emphasizing the organization's religious freedom under the First Amendment.

The ruling highlights the balance between religious liberty and disability rights in the context of addiction treatment within faith-based rehabilitation programs.

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