Is It Time to End the War on Drugs? - King County Bar Association

4. Treatment is an effective response <strong>to</strong> drug addiction.There is a broadly accepted body of evidence for <strong>the</strong> proposition that treatmentprograms can be highly effective in reducing <strong>the</strong> incidence of drug addiction and inmitigating <strong>the</strong> harms <strong>to</strong> drug-addicted individuals and <strong>to</strong> society that are associated withdrug addiction. One authoritative governmental source of research-based information ondrug addiction treatment is <strong>the</strong> National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), one of <strong>the</strong>National Institutes of Health. In 1999, NIDA published a report entitled Principles of DrugAddiction Treatment: A Research-Based Guide. 112 Among its conclusions are <strong>the</strong> following:[T]reatment reduces drug use by 40 <strong>to</strong> 60 percent and significantly decreasescriminal activity during and after treatment. . . . Methadone treatment has beenshown <strong>to</strong> decrease criminal behavior by as much as 50 percent. . . . [D]rug addictiontreatment reduces <strong>the</strong> risk of HIV infection . . . . Treatment can improve <strong>the</strong>prospects for employment, with gains of up <strong>to</strong> 40 percent after treatment. 113Studies conducted in Washing<strong>to</strong>n State support similarly positive conclusions about<strong>the</strong> effectiveness of drug treatment. The Division of Alcohol & Substance Abuse (DASA)of <strong>the</strong> Washing<strong>to</strong>n State Department of Social & Health Services ga<strong>the</strong>rs information andreports annually on addiction-related problems and on <strong>the</strong> measurable effects of treatment.<strong>It</strong>s reports show that treatment is associated with dramatic decreases in crime, need forschool discipline, illness, unemployment, accidents and low-weight births, among o<strong>the</strong>rthings, and with corresponding decreases in costs <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> state. 114According <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> United States Department of Health and Human Services, Centerfor Substance Abuse Treatment, “treatment cuts medical costs.” The Center cited data fromWashing<strong>to</strong>n State showing that 39% of “substance abusers” need major medical care in <strong>the</strong>year before treatment and only 12% needed it in <strong>the</strong> year after. In addition, medical costscovered by Medicaid were $4,500 less for patients in <strong>the</strong> year following treatment, morethan compensating for <strong>the</strong> $2,300 cost of <strong>the</strong> treatment. 115Assessing <strong>the</strong> cost-effectiveness of drug treatment, a 1994 RAND Corporation study,funded in part by <strong>the</strong> Office of Drug Control Policy and <strong>the</strong> United States Army, found thatsocietal costs associated with crime and lost productivity were reduced by $7.46 as a resul<strong>to</strong>f every dollar spent on treatment. By comparison, <strong>the</strong> costs associated with crime and lostproductivity were reduced by $0.52 for every dollar spent on domestic law enforcement andincarceration. 116The Washing<strong>to</strong>n State Institute for Public Policy has concluded, similarly, that <strong>the</strong>benefits of drug treatment outweigh <strong>the</strong> costs, and that drug courts, in particular, “can saveabout two dollars for every one dollar of taxpayer cost.” 11748