Its prevalent in the front pages of many newspapers, its stories litter the pages with pictures and stories about the rising tide of heroin and opiate use and the casualties of ramped up enforcement.
None more so than in my home state of New Hampshire where authorities are waging a full scale war against Heroin / Opiate users and dealers due to a rash of deaths due to some tainted Heroin making its rounds around the nation.
What the authorities fail to understand is that their efforts are compounding the problem.
Opiates by nature are highly addictive and jail does not provide addicts the right environment to fix the problem and help them develop coping skills needed, most will return to the exact same way of life albeit a better criminal once they are released and the vicious cycle continues.
Now with felony drug charges, heavy fines and a host of other problems levied against them, most will now have an even harder time getting a job and leaving their drug seeking life of crime behind.
Instead of imposing lengthy jail terms at the taxpayers expense which has not worked in the past, maybe we should look toward state subsidized medically assisted rehab / detox with suboxone or methadone.
And upon successful completion of the program and a probationary period where regular drug screenings are put in place to ensure abstinence.
In the long term crime rates would go down and the state would be providing a much needed service to the mentally ill.
New Hampshire was one state that was recently sued due to it having some of the worst mental health care in the nation.
Its non-existent facilities meant an overburdened emergency department, increased crime rates and no place to send people for much needed care.
Instead most are discharged back onto the streets to continue their struggle to survive.
Drug addiction is a form of mental illness no matter how you slice it.
The majority of people who are addicted to opiates do not enjoy the daily struggle and behavior they need to partake in to avoid the dreaded crippling withdrawal symptoms they would endure.
If handcuffs were exchanged for help and support it would have a dramatic effect on the crime rate, but I guess that is not good for business in the eyes of the police force, as what other reason could they have to hire more officers?
None more so than in my home state of New Hampshire where authorities are waging a full scale war against Heroin / Opiate users and dealers due to a rash of deaths due to some tainted Heroin making its rounds around the nation.
What the authorities fail to understand is that their efforts are compounding the problem.
Opiates by nature are highly addictive and jail does not provide addicts the right environment to fix the problem and help them develop coping skills needed, most will return to the exact same way of life albeit a better criminal once they are released and the vicious cycle continues.
Now with felony drug charges, heavy fines and a host of other problems levied against them, most will now have an even harder time getting a job and leaving their drug seeking life of crime behind.
Instead of imposing lengthy jail terms at the taxpayers expense which has not worked in the past, maybe we should look toward state subsidized medically assisted rehab / detox with suboxone or methadone.
And upon successful completion of the program and a probationary period where regular drug screenings are put in place to ensure abstinence.
In the long term crime rates would go down and the state would be providing a much needed service to the mentally ill.
New Hampshire was one state that was recently sued due to it having some of the worst mental health care in the nation.
Its non-existent facilities meant an overburdened emergency department, increased crime rates and no place to send people for much needed care.
Instead most are discharged back onto the streets to continue their struggle to survive.
Drug addiction is a form of mental illness no matter how you slice it.
The majority of people who are addicted to opiates do not enjoy the daily struggle and behavior they need to partake in to avoid the dreaded crippling withdrawal symptoms they would endure.
If handcuffs were exchanged for help and support it would have a dramatic effect on the crime rate, but I guess that is not good for business in the eyes of the police force, as what other reason could they have to hire more officers?
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