Pubdate: Fri, 26 Jan 2001 Source: Rutland Herald (VT) Copyright: 2001 Rutland Herald Contact: P.O. Box 668, Rutland VT 05702-0668 Fax: (802) 775-2423 Feedback: http://rutlandherald.nybor.com/News/Opinion/Letters/ Website: http://rutlandherald.nybor.com/ NOW IS THE TIME It is time for Vermont lawmakers to take the initiative in pushing for a comprehensive anti-drug program that will respond constructively to the increased use of dangerous drugs in Vermont. Major drug busts in the Rutland area, as well as a rise in crimes related to drug addiction, have pointed to the heroin problem in the region. City leaders have taken needed steps to bolster efforts by city police to address the problem, and Mayor John Cassarino has offered a tax proposal that would provide necessary funding in the future. Statewide, the use of heroin has probably doubled in the past three years. The number of Vermonters seeking treatment rose from 164 to 344 in that time. That number doesn't take into account the users who don't seek treatment. The Vermont State Police have made a compelling case for boosting manpower, which has eroded substantially in the past eight years. And Gov. Howard Dean has made the fight against heroin one of his priorities. But so far Dean has not come up with resources for a long-term attack on the problem. The Legislature ought to use this moment to take Dean's initiative further. Dean is well known for his punitive attitude toward drugs and for his lack of faith in the efficacy of treatment for drug users. But aggressive treatment, combined with aggressive law enforcement, has not been tried. And at this late date in the war on drugs, we ought to realize that law enforcement alone has not done the job. Law enforcement agencies at the local and state levels can use a boost in resources and manpower. But so can agencies that treat addictions. Effective treatment is labor-intensive and could be made available to people both inside and outside of the state's corrections system. Mental health workers know that drug addiction is not an easy affliction to cure. Addicts sometimes want no part of treatment. But the state could establish institutions that would respond more effectively to people who need help. Drug courts could establish a regimen of treatment that would expose people in state custody to the kind of help they may never have seen before. Dean has promised to move quickly to set up clinics for drug treatment, following passage last year of legislation allowing for methadone treatment. But as Dean has often said, methadone alone will not solve the problem. Methadone needs to be part of a larger program of treatment. As of last week, only two hospitals in Vermont had expressed firm interest in establishing methadone clinics. Rutland Regional Medical Center is waiting to determine what resources will be available and what kind of program the regulations will establish. Health care facilities such as RRMC need to be given the support and the resources to do the job. Vermont is a small enough state that it could pioneer methods for treating drug problems that go beyond the obvious first step of locking people up. It would be in the state's interest to do so both to prevent the kind of crime and dereliction that is a drain on any community and to rescue Vermonters who succumb to the deathly appeal of drugs. A package that included both law enforcement and treatment measures might draw bipartisan support. Vermonters are not helpless before the scourge of drug addiction if they have the will to act. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom