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Recovery in the News
Learn about addictions, solutions
Don Perdue
The Charleston Gazette
March 26, 2010
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Chad Shaffer of Kenova made excellent points in a recent letter ("Control those who dispense the drugs," March 16), and I certainly share his frustration with our inability to get control of the drug problem in our state and in our local communities.
Many thousands of West Virginians are suffering from addiction to alcohol and other drugs. As Mr. Shaffer points out, many of these are addicted because of the greed and apparent lack of respect for their profession of a small handful of physicians and other health-care providers. However, this is not a problem that can be solved in its entirety by solving a small part of it.
I salute the diligence and dedication of the police agencies that recently stopped the alleged distribution of addictive drugs by a physician and his staff in Mingo County. As a legislator, I am proud to support such efforts. Law enforcement agencies in West Virginia have reduced the scourge of methamphetamine, as well. In one recent 12-month period, the number of "meth labs" was reduced by nearly 200. This is a good start, but, as noted above, it is not the whole solution.
The addicts will always find another way. Most narcotics addicts, for example, get their drugs from legitimate prescriptions. Many of them engage in what is called "doctor shopping." This is the practice of going from doctor to doctor complaining of pain to get prescriptions for opiates such as oxycodone. This Legislature, with leadership from Sen. Evan Jenkins and others, passed a package of bills designed to slow this heinous practice. This will put a dent in doctor shopping, but it isn't a total solution either.
Mr. Shaffer mentioned the beer tax proposal. I was the legislator who tied an increased tax on one of the many legally available addictive substances to the cost of treatment for that addiction. Engaging all four necessary dictums of prevention, intervention, treatment and recovery for substance abusers reduces use by 50 percent to 60 percent. It increases the likelihood of employment by 40 percent. Addicts who undergo treatment are 40 percent less likely to be arrested. The statistics go on about the value of these integrated parts of the substance-abuse solution, but the one that gets a legislator's attention is that every $1 we spend on treating addiction returns $4 to $7 in reduced crime and criminal-justice costs. This incredible return on investment, as noteworthy as it is, cannot calculate the impact on lives at levels far more important than dollars.
The solutions that Mr. Shaffer suggests -- a national database, a law prohibiting kickbacks -- are good ideas and ones that state legislators have debated. There are reasons that they aren't in place presently, but perhaps someday they will be. In the meantime, I welcome the kind of outrage and desire to help that Mr. Shaffer has displayed. I invite all West Virginians to learn about this problem and all the parts of the solution. Together, we can bring this devouring beast under control, and recover the wounded in our communities, in our schools, and even in our homes.
Delegate Perdue is chairman of the House Health and Human Resources Committee.