PORTLAND (AP) – A state drug treatment official has concerns about the future of methadone clinics in Maine following the conviction of an addiction specialist for forging prescriptions at his Westbrook clinic.

Kim Johnson, director of the Office of Substance Abuse, said she is concerned about the future of CAP Quality Care Inc. and the effect that Dr. Marc Shinderman’s convictions could have on the creation of new clinics in the state.

Shinderman, a psychiatrist, was found guilty of forging another doctor’s name and prescription number on prescriptions, for drugs other than methadone, for patients at CAP Quality Care. The clinic now faces federal civil action.

“I’m worried about losing that clinic,” Johnson said. “I’m worried that we will not be able to find physicians to serve as medical directors. I’m worried that doctors will feel targeted if they work with these clients.”

Maine’s methadone clinics now treat about 2,200 patients for addiction to opiates such as heroin and Oxycontin. The clinics are located in Calais, Bangor, Waterville and Greater Portland.

Johnson said she would like to see additional clinics open in Augusta and Lewiston-Auburn, as well as a third one in the Portland area. There is a need for another 700 openings for patients statewide, she said, but she is concerned that the controversy created by the Shinderman case could have a chilling effect.

Johnson and others believe that Shinderman came under scrutiny by law enforcement because of the large number of methadone overdose deaths in 2002, the first year of his clinic’s operation.

Shinderman’s clinic was searched under warrant in 2003. The search uncovered Shinderman’s prescription writing practices, which led to his conviction.

U.S. Attorney Paula Silsby said Shinderman’s prosecution had nothing to do with his work with methadone.

“Methadone is an accepted opiate addiction treatment modality, and it is not the province of this office to opine on what might be a good or bad form of treatment,” she said.

“I don’t know whether it works or it doesn’t work, but we prosecuted this case just as we would any doctor, hospital, nursing home, doctor, physician’s assistant or anyone else in health care who fails to comply with federal law.”

Joseph Py, medical director for Discovery House, a nonprofit company that runs methadone clinics in South Portland, Waterville and Calais, said Shinderman’s theories about increased doses for treatment represent the latest thinking in addiction medicine, even if they are not yet mainstream.

But Py doesn’t think Shinderman’s prosecution will have much effect on methadone distribution in the state.

“The issues he was convicted of were things that nobody should be doing anyway,” Py said. “It doesn’t help people’s attitudes about treating addicts, but other than that, I don’t think it will have much effect on the other clinics.”