State of Arizona's Largest Provider of Medical Addiction Services to Conduct Pilot Study of Hythiam's PROMETA(TM) Protocols; Arizona Joins Idaho and Washington in Evaluating PROMETA Pilot Results towards Reimbursement.

LOS ANGELES -- Hythiam, Inc. (NASDAQ:HYTM), a healthcare services management company licensing the PROMETA(TM) physiological protocols designed to treat alcohol, methamphetamine and cocaine dependence, announced today that Community Bridges will conduct a commercial pilot to assess PROMETA's clinical benefit in a Medicaid eligible population of those who are methamphetamine dependent or poly-addicted to methamphetamine and alcohol. If successful in this pilot, PROMETA will be considered by the State of Arizona as a treatment option. Community Bridges, which treats 15,500 people per year, and is currently a Hythiam licensee, is the largest provider of medical addiction treatment for the State of Arizona, and was recently selected to develop a center of excellence for methamphetamine treatment by the state.

All services offered by Community Bridges are licensed by the Arizona Department of Health, Division of Behavioral Health Licensure and the National Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). Community Bridges is also the largest substance abuse crisis provider for the state.

Christina Dye, director of Clinical and Recovery Services, Division of Behavioral Health Services, Clinical and Recovery Services for the State of Arizona, commented, "The Department is always interested in new technology to treat addiction and looks forward to reviewing the results of Hythiam's study."

"I have seen first-hand the effects of PROMETA among addicts treated for methamphetamine dependence at Community Bridges," said Dr. Michel Sucher, recent acting medical director of the Division of Behavioral Health, Department of Health Services for the State of Arizona. "Additionally, we are greatly encouraged by the recent preliminary results of the Research Across America study of PROMETA that show significant clinical benefit across a diverse sample of methamphetamine abusers. We are eager to replicate these results, and those of others such as Community Bridges in this evaluation of the PROMETA protocol in our own Medicaid eligible population."

According to the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) compiled by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the number of methamphetamine-related treatment admissions to publicly funded treatment facilities has been increasing in Arizona. Methamphetamine-related admissions have been greater than admissions for any other illicit drug, and treatment providers in the State report that stimulant users are switching from crack cocaine to crystal methamphetamine because it can be smoked like crack, is readily available, has a longer half life, and is a more euphoric stimulant.

"Based upon our direct experience with PROMETA, we have been encouraged to work with Hythiam and the State of Arizona to produce a pilot study to evaluate the potential impact PROMETA may have on reducing the consequences of methamphetamine dependence within Arizona," said Dr. Frank Scarpati, Chief Executive Officer of Community Bridges and the chair of the Maricopa County Task Force on Methamphetamine use. Dr. Scarpati also served for three years as the community liaison for the Arizona Governor's Office of Drug Policy, coordinating the Governor's drug prevention efforts throughout the state. "I look forward to a successful outcome to present to the State Department of Health Services for their consideration."

"We are pleased that Arizona has elected to join other states in evaluating PROMETA's clinical benefit in treating the methamphetamine dependent for the purposes of providing reimbursement," said Terren Peizer, Hythiam's Chairman and CEO. "Many states, including Arizona, have been greatly affected by the increasing rates of methamphetamine addiction. Arizona's Medicaid system has already committed significant resources toward treating the growing number of methamphetamine-dependent individuals, who represent a costly burden for the state. Without treatment that addresses both the physiological and psychological effects of this disease, many of these individuals will continue to place financial strain on state medical resources, or they will end up incarcerated in a state correctional facility. We believe the State of Arizona will find that PROMETA is a viable treatment option not only for methamphetamine dependence, but eventually for alcohol and cocaine dependent individuals, as well."

Peizer continued, "Agencies in Arizona can further benefit from the growing evidence base supporting PROMETA as a clinically beneficial treatment for this very difficult to treat disease of methamphetamine dependence. We will work to provide interested parties with access to study results for PROMETA for methamphetamine dependence announced recently by Dr. Harold C. Urschel, III. We believe as a result of the combined validation from Dr. Urschel and the successful outcomes of other ongoing pilots, there will be increasing support for adoption of PROMETA for use in many other states' healthcare and criminal justice systems."

Among 23 cities studied nationwide, Phoenix, in Maricopa County, had the second highest usage of methamphetamine according to Drug Use Forecasting data. Methamphetamine is the number one illegal drug contributing to violent crime in Arizona, according to the Office of the Arizona Attorney General, with Maricopa as the leading county in methamphetamine lab seizures statewide.

Participants for the pilot will be recruited from a group of patients seeking treatment for methamphetamine dependency at Community Bridges, Hythiam's Arizona licensee, which offers substance use disorder and behavioral health services. The pilot will follow 30 methamphetamine-dependent patients for 3 months.

Eligible patients will be evaluated by Community Bridges treatment staff and given a medical assessment. Initial treatment will be provided as needed. After stabilization, subjects will be further assessed by a project coordinator to determine whether interested parties meet the exclusion criteria for the PROMETA protocol.

Outcomes to be measured will be weekly self-reports of methamphetamine and other drug use; urine screenings; breathalyzer tests; levels of participation in Community Bridges' outpatient psychosocial treatment programs; cravings, and a regular report of any side-effects or adverse events.

About Community Bridges

Founded in 1982 as the East Valley Addiction Council, Community Bridges offers crises services, medical detoxification clinical programs, and transition management services to clients. The medical detoxification programs generally last from three to seven days and are designed to ensure that all men and women referred to Community Bridges are clinically triaged, safely detoxed, and referred into a therapeutic continuum of care. All Community Bridges services are licensed by the Arizona Department of Health, Division of Behavioral Health Licensure, and the National Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). Community Bridges is a leading provider of emergency addiction treatment and medical detoxification services to ValueOptions, the behavioral health services provider for Medicaid managed care in Maricopa County, Arizona.

About PROMETA(TM)

Hythiam's PROMETA(TM) treatment protocols are designed for use by healthcare providers seeking to treat individuals diagnosed with dependencies to alcohol, cocaine or methamphetamine, as well as combinations of these drugs. The PROMETA treatment protocols comprise nutritional supplements, FDA-approved oral and IV medications used off-label and separately administered in a unique dosing algorithm, as well as psychosocial or other recovery-oriented therapy chosen by the patient and his or her treatment provider. As a result, PROMETA represents an innovative approach to managing alcohol, cocaine, or methamphetamine dependence that is designed to address physiological, nutritional, and psychosocial aspects of the disease, and is thereby intended to offer patients an opportunity to achieve sustained recovery.

About Hythiam, Inc.

Hythiam(R) is a healthcare services management company focused on delivering solutions for those suffering from alcoholism and other substance dependencies. Hythiam researches, develops, licenses and commercializes innovative physiological, nutritional, and behavioral treatment protocols that seek to address substance dependence. Additionally, Hythiam provides proprietary administrative services to assist physicians and facilities with staff education, marketing and outreach support, and outcomes tracking for data analysis. For further information, please click on www.hythiam.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for statements of historical fact, the matters discussed in this press release are forward looking and made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements reflect numerous assumptions and involve a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company's control that may cause actual results to differ materially from stated expectations. These risk factors include, among others, limited operating history and lack of statistically significant formal research studies, the risk that treatment protocols might not be effective, difficulty in developing, exploiting and protecting proprietary technologies, intense competition and substantial regulation in the healthcare industry; and additional risks factors as discussed in the reports filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available on its website at http://www.sec.gov.