ACT budget to provide millions for drug rehab and treatment

But the opposition is concerned the funding announcement is simply a re-announcement, and said it may be "disingenuous" to represent the $6 million as new money.

Drug support services have warned in recent years that they are being increasingly stretched by a combination of rising demand, increasing numbers of complex polysubstance abuse cases, and stagnant government funding.

Wait times to get into residential rehabilitation in the ACT stretch out to three to four months, and other frontline workers have found themselves under increasing pressure.

The ACT government announced an additional $6 million over four years for drug treatment and rehab services on Friday morning, which will be made available in the June budget.

Last year, the government announced a one-off $800,000 boost over 2015-16, largely to combat ice addiction, making the yearly total spend $17.2 million.

A large slice of the new money, almost $700,000, will go to six support services run by Directions ACT, Toora Women Inc, Karralika Programs Inc, Ted Noffs Foundation, The Salvation Army, and the Gugan Gulwan Youth Aboriginal Corporation.

A one-off payment of $115,000 will go to the Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Association ACT in 2015-16.

ATODA chief executive Carrie Fowlie said on Friday the additional money would be vital in reducing waiting times and help rehabilitation services meet a 36 per cent increase in demand recently.

"Specialist drug interventions are a good investment, they are cost-effective and can reduce demand in the more expensive hospital and criminal justice systems," she said.

"This funding will mean that more Canberrans with drug and alcohol problems can get help when, where and how they need it."

The naloxone program run by the Canberra Alliance for Harm Minimisation and Advocacy, which reverses the effects of opioid overdose, will get $115,000 annually.

CAHMA manager Chris Gough welcomed that funding on Friday, saying the drug saved lives and was vital for opioid users.

"It shows real foresight and it's a fantastic outcome for people who use opioids in the ACT," Mr Gough said.

"It's crucial. Naloxone is a crucial health intervention, and it is also important that the community who are most affected have in their hands the mechanism to reverse the effects of opioid overdose."

Mr Gough said remaining priorities for opioid users were funding for the greater uptake of pharmacotherapy alternatives for those who could not take methadone,

More than $120,000 will go to education and training for support workers and $375,000 will be used to fund post-treatment support through peer support workers.

In announcing the money on Friday morning, Health Minister Simon Corbell said the ACT government was working to fill gaps left by federal shortfalls "as best we can".

"Through this funding ACT Government is committed to working with a range of essential non-government organisations that provide drug treatment and support services, which will increase their capacity to treat patients and reduce waiting times," Mr Corbell said.

"The ACT Government remains committed to supporting our drug treatment services, which will be an essential boost for these organisations while the federal government continues to cut drug service funding across the nation."

But Opposition Leader Jerermy Hanson voiced concerns that the $6 million was not a new commitment.

He said it appeared the government may simply have re-announced existing funding commitments.

"We support money going into drug rehab, and we've seen an enormous amount of money come from the federal government," he said.

"But today's announcement does seem to be substantively a re-announcement of previous commitments, yes there is some new money, but substantively this is re-announcements."

Mr Hanson also argued cuts to the police budget were counter-effective to the government's efforts to combat drugs. '

He said police funding was critical to tackling drug supply at its source.

The budget will be handed down on June 7.