Washington State Coalition Urges Regulatory Control of Illegal Drugs
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Washington state coalition urges Volume 17 Number 11 regulatory control of illegal drugs March 14, 2005 Senate legislation would and public disorder, improve public ISSN 1042-1394 establish special commission health, protect children, and use on drug control scare public resources more wisely. This view is part of a report re- A coalition of civic leaders and leased this month by the association. Highlights… groups in Washington state has Working together with a broad coali- taken the bold step of advancing a tion of professional and civic organ- A coalition of civic and professional legislative agenda pushing state reg- izations, the association is aiming to leaders in Washington state have ulation of illegal drugs and removal taken the unprecedented step of find more effective ways to reduce pushing for drug policy reform at of criminal sanctions associated with the harm and costs of drug abuse. Adrug use. While advocacy for the de- The coalition called the War on the state level. While certain well- known national groups have criminalization of certain non-violent Drugs a “tragic failure” and has called pushed the drug regulation, de- drug offenses is not a novel idea, for the first steps in an exit strategy, criminalization agenda, it's this coalition represents mainstream beginning with a fundamental shift in unprecedented at the state level public health, medical, and legal the way the state addresses the by such prominent mainstream groups — groups not typically asso- chronic problem of drug abuse. medical, legal and other profes- ciated with this type of advocacy. The coalition, which also sional groups. These advocates are The coalition, spearheaded by requested that the state legislature pushing this controversial initia- the King County Bar Association, establish a commission of experts tive in Washington's state legisla- maintains that current drug control ture. See story, this page. from the field to make detailed rec- policies have failed to reduce crime See Washington State on page 2 Drug courts continue to show suc- cess, particularly in terms of reduced recidivism rates. Drug court programs reduce recidivism, Outcomes on relapse rates were but yield mixed results on relapse mixed, but the overall cost-effec- tiveness of programs evaluated by A Government Accountability for methodological soundness. The the Government Accountability Office (GAO) analysis of adult drug report covers recidivism outcomes, Office (GAO) remain positive. court programs released this month substance use relapse, program com- See story, this page. concluded that most programs led pletion, and the costs and benefits of to recidivism reductions correspon- drug court programs. A new study from Johns Hopkins ding to the length of time spent in As of September 2004, there University on injection drug use Aa program. were over 1,200 drug court pro- finds that unsafe practices start early — as early as the first The report, Adult Drug Courts: grams operating, in addition to instance of use. Researchers push Evidence Indicates Recidivism Reduc- about 500 being planned, according for early intervention with current tions and Mixed Results for Other to the report. users and others to educate on the Outcomes, indicated, however, that Eligible drug court program dangers of shared needles. the impact of drug courts on sub- participants ranged from nonviolent See story, page 4. stance use relapse is limited and offenders charged with drug-related Missouri advocates continue to try mixed. offenses to medium-risk defendants to raise its low alcohol excise tax … The GAO is required by federal with extensive criminal histories and 24 years and counting. However, a statute to assess drug courts. To meet failed prior substance abuse treat- new poll showing strong support this mandate, the federal agency ment experiences. Participants were for the increase had advocates conducted a systematic review of also described as predominantly excited. See story, page 5. drug court program research, select- male with poor employment and ing 27 evaluations of 39 adult drug educational achievements. court programs that met its criteria See GAO Report on page 5 A Manisses Communications Group publication www.manisses.com 2 Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly March 14, 2005 Washington State from page 1 which include doctors, lawyers, Association: “Pervasive of volumi- ommendations for statutory changes judges, drug treatment specialists, nous research indicates that a public and establish a state-level system of health care professionals and educa- health approach to drug abuse — regulatory control, said they are tors. Coalition members represent stressing research, education, pre- encouraged by Senate state legisla- 16 organizations, including the vention and treatment — is far more tion to address this issue. Washington Society of Addiction effective than the use of criminal The Washington State Senate on Medicine, the Washington Academy sanctions. However, the policy of March 2 held a public hearing on of Family Physicians, the Washing- drug prohibition, which has Senate Bill 6055, which would estab- ton State Pharmacy Association, the spawned a range of intractable prob- lish a consultative body to provide King County Medical Society and lems, from a flourishing “black mar- recommendations to the legislature the Washington State Psychological ket” to the spread of blood-borne for the establishment of a new legal Association. diseases to official corruption, has framework of regulatory control “Physicians know that drug been a major impediment to employ- over psychoactive substances. addiction is a curable illness,” said ing such a public health approach.” State administration officials were unavailable for comment. “The report…calls for a regulation approach to Following the public hearing, render the illegal [drug] market unprofitable, the coalition released a report enti- tled Controlling Psychoactive Sub- protect children much better and provide stances: The Current System and Alternative, which addresses key treatment to the hard-to-reach population issues on the “War on Drugs,” and and high-volume users.” aims to provide policymakers and the public with a roadmap to help Roger Goodman, director of drug policy at the King County Bar Association reduce wasteful public spending and to provide better treatment for addic- The coalition wants the special Jennifer Mayfield from the Washing- tion and protection for children. commission to make recommenda- ton Academy of Family Physicians. “The report is a roadmap for an tions to the state legislature on how to “The costs of effective treatment are exit strategy, as we call it, for the undercut the violent “black” market in so much lower than the costs of war on drugs,” Roger Goodman, illegal drugs, how to protect children incarceration, and where the harsh director of drug policy project at the more effectively from access to drugs criminal justice approach has not King County Bar Association, told and how to provide addiction treat- worked, it’s now time to focus ADAW. “It calls for a regulation ment to hard-to-reach addicts who instead on public health measures approach to render the illegal [drug] are causing public disorder and are a to address the drug abuse problem,” market unprofitable, protect chil- major public health problem. Mayfield said. dren much better and provide treat- The coalition is comprised of a Added Jeffrey Mero of the ment to the hard-to-reach popula- dozen task forces and committees Washington State Public Health tion and high-volume users.” Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly (ISSN 1042-1394) is an independent newsletter meeting the information needs of all alcoholism and drug abuse professionals, providing timely reports on national trends and developments in funding, policy, prevention, treatment and research in alcohol and drug abuse, and also covering issues on certification, reimbursement and other news of importance to public, private nonprofit and for-profit treatment Executive Editor Karienne Stovell agencies. Published every week except for the last Monday in May, the first Monday in July, the last Monday in November and the last Monday in Senior Managing Editor Brion P. McAlarney, J.D. December. 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Subscription Information: 800-333-7771; E-mail: [email protected] It is illegal under federal copyright law to reproduce this publication or any portion of it without the publisher’s permission March 14, 2005 Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly 3 Goodman added, “Let’s bring the addict indoors and re-medicalize