L-A Radio: KFI Host Says S.F. Provided Free Alcohol To Homeless

KFI 640 AM talk host John Kobylt has highlighted and criticized a now-terminated San Francisco program that spent approximately $5 million annually to provide alcohol to a small group of homeless chronic alcoholics.

The program, known as the Managed Alcohol Program (MAP), was originally launched during the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent severe withdrawal symptoms and related deaths by delivering controlled, metered doses of beer or liquor to participants when bars and stores were inaccessible. It continued well beyond the emergency period. San Francisco's new mayor, Daniel Lurie, has ended the program stating it no longer made sense. 

The initiative served only 55 clients over its run, resulting in an average cost of about $454,000 per person—a figure the KFI host and critics described as shocking waste of taxpayer funds on supplying alcohol rather than addressing root causes of homelessness and addiction.

The nonprofit Community Forward SF operated the program under a city contract starting in 2023, but officials terminated the agreement after Lurie's decision. Supporters of harm reduction approaches had argued it reduced emergency medical calls and stabilized participants, though opponents—including the radio segment—called it enabling addiction at exorbitant public expense.

This fits a broader pattern of scrutiny over San Francisco's high per-person homelessness spending, which has long drawn criticism for inefficiency despite large budgets. The program's closure reflects a shift under the new administration toward reevaluating such initiatives.