and support services, may cost an average of $126.00 per week or $6,552.00 per year. the average cost for one full year of methadone maintenance treatment is approximately $4,700 per patient, whereas one full year of imprisonment costs approximately $24,000 per person. regulation united states and canada methadone is a schedule i controlled substance in canada and schedule ii in the united states, with an acscn of 9250 and a 2014 annual aggregate manufacturing quota of 31,875 kilos for sale. methadone intermediate is also controlled, under acscn 9226 also under schedule ii, with a quota of 38,875 kilos. in most countries of the world, methadone is similarly restricted. the salts of methadone in use are the hydrobromide (free base conversion ratio 0.793), hydrochloride (0.894), and hcl monohydrate (0.850). methadone is also regulated internationally as a schedule i controlled substance under the united nations single convention on narcotic drugs of 1961. methadone clinics in the united states, prescription of methadone requires intensive monitoring and must be obtained in-person from an opioid treatment program—colloquially known as a 'methadone clinic'—when prescribed for opioid use disorder (oud). according to federal laws, methadone cannot be prescribed by a doctor and obtained from a pharmacy in order to treat addiction. because of its long half-life, methadone is almost invariably prescribed to be taken in a single daily dose. at nearly all methadone clinics in the us, patients must visit a clinic to receive and take their dose under the supervision of a nurse. both patients who are new to methadone treatment and high-risk patients—such as those who are using drugs and alcohol, including cannabis—must visit the clinic daily. 'take-home' or 'take-away' methadone after 90 days to six months (depending on the clinic), if patients have met the clinic's criteria, they are typically eligible for take-home doses of methadone. therefore, they may be allowed to take anywhere from one to six days to visit the clinic once or twice weekly instead of every day. in accordance with dea and samhsa regulations, patients who use other drugs may not be eligible for take-home methadone. some clinics close on national holidays and provide doses to patients to take home. in the 2000s, patients, doctors, nurses, those working in the addiction field, and advocates of many kinds have heavily criticized the extremely tight regulations regarding take-home methadone. advocates for reforming methadone regulations argue that methadone could be much more effective if it was not necessary for patients to visit clinics daily. many addicts seeking treatment usually avoid methadone or see it as a last resort, specifically because they do not want to have to go to a clinic every day to receive their medication. the use of take-home doses was expanded during the first year of the covid-19 pandemic. other countries in russia, methadone treatment is illegal. in 2008, chief sanitary inspector of russia gennadiy onishchenko, claimed that russian health officials are not convinced of the methadone's efficacy in treating heroin and/or opioid addicts. instead of replacement therapy and gradual reduction of illicit drug abuse, russian doctors encourage immediate cessation and withdrawal. addicts are generally given sedatives and non-opioid analgesics in order to cope with withdrawal symptoms. brazilian footballer assistant robson oliveira was arrested in 2019 upon arriving in russia with methadone tablets sold legally in other countries for what was considered drug trafficking under russian law. as of 2015 china had the largest methadone maintenance treatment program with over 250,000 people in over 650 clinics in 27 provinces. in australia and some other countries, methadone is available at pharmacies, not just at special clinics.