Pubdate: Sun, 03 Sep 2000
Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA)
Copyright: 2000 Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Contact:  P.O. Box 15012, Worcester, MA 01615-0012
Fax: (508) 793-9313
Website: http://www.telegram.com/

GRIM REVIVAL

For anyone still in denial about the inroads illegal drugs have made in 
Massachusetts, a new nationwide study should be a disturbing wake-up 
call.  

Federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration data 
show the state has some of the highest levels of illegal drug use in 
the nation -- in every age group.  

An in-state survey conducted in June had similar results. Despite law 
enforcement efforts, heroin abuse has surpassed cocaine, crack and 
marijuana abuse.  

In fact, the state study indicated that use of cocaine, marijuana and 
alcohol actually has declined in recent years, while heroin use has 
increased steadily.  

It is an ominous and disturbing trend.  

Heroin users are susceptible not only to the debilitating effects of 
drug abuse, but also are at high risk of fatal overdoses and of 
contracting HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and other diseases.  

Yet an increasing number of Bay State residents, including young 
people, appear oblivious to the risk.  

Area drug treatment facilities say heroin is the "drug of choice" among 
their clients. Spectrum Health Systems, which operates outpatient and 
residential treatment centers in the area, reports that 70 percent of 
its 6,500 admissions last year were heroin users.  

Strikingly, these clients are not necessarily people who have relapsed 
and are again circulating through the system. They are new admissions.  

Equally chilling are statistics that the average age of users has 
dropped from people in the late 20s and early 30s to the mid-20s.  

Those numbers suggest we are in grave danger of losing a significant 
segment of the next generation to the insidious, crime-inducing 
influence of drugs. S S S Formulating a public strategy for combating 
the heroin plague will not be easy.  

Agencies that treat addicts agree there must be a multi-faceted 
approach combining education, prevention and treatment.  

The Worcester School Department, for one, has moved aggressively. Its 
comprehensive health program, a model for other school districts, 
teaches students to weigh risk factors in their decision-making -- not 
only on drug use, but also on sexual activity, drinking and the like.  

The Massachusetts Prevention Center, with 10 sites statewide, offers 
programs designed to guide communities and individuals in countering 
drug abuse.  

Treatment for heroin addiction ranges from outpatient services, such as 
the methadone "maintenance" clinics, to short-term detoxification 
centers and long-term residential treatment.  

The detox centers and methadone clinics provide crucial transitional 
help to heroin users taking their first steps away from addiction.  

For addicts with multiple problems -- including homelessness, illnesses 
such as HIV/AIDS or hepatitis C and criminal records -- there is an 
increasing need for residential treatment, an admittedly expensive 
option that can last anywhere from two to nine months.  

The Department of Public Health has about 2,100 residential beds -- 
just over 200 in Central Massachusetts -- with an occupancy rate of 
about 90 percent.  

While police and anti-drug agencies play a vital role in slowing the 
heroin traffic, their efforts must be supported by vigorous prevention 
and treatment.  

Law enforcement efforts will be futile while the alarming demand 
documented in state and national studies continues.  
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