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eNewsletter - May 20, 2010
ONDCP 2010 Drug Strategy Released
Faces & Voices applauds the release of the Obama Administration’s 2010 National Drug Control Strategy. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) director R. Gil Kerlikowske signaled a new direction in federal drug policy, that includes first-ever attention to addiction recovery and wellness. The strategy calls for support for and partnership with the over 20 million Americans in recovery from addiction. Faces & Voices looks forward to working with ONDCP’s recovery team to support opportunities for people in recovery and their families to press for consideration of recovery-oriented policies in communities and across all federal agencies.
Among the long overdue strategies are a review of laws and regulations that impede recovery from addiction. “Many laws and regulations that were established for the purpose of punishing or deterring drug use make no distinction between the person who continues to use drugs and the person who is on the pathway to recovery and needs housing, employment, a driver’s license, or a student loan to fully rejoin society,” according to the strategy, which calls for ONDCP to work with the Congress and Executive Branch to identify opportunities to eliminate legislative and regulatory barriers to recovery.
Other recovery-oriented strategies include:
- Fostering the expansion of community-based recovery support programs including recovery schools, peer-led programs, mutual help groups and recovery support centers.
- Supporting post-incarceration reentry efforts by assisting in job placement, facilitating access to drug-free housing, and developing adult reentry programs.
The strategy has an increased focus on demand reduction initiatives by expanding access to addiction treatment and prevention services in the public, private and criminal justice settings. It boosts community-based anti-drug programs, encourages health care providers to screen for drug problems before addiction sets in and expands treatment beyond specialty centers to mainstream health care facilities.
The plan calls for reducing the rate of youth drug use by 15 percent over the next five years and for similar reductions in chronic drug use, drug abuse deaths and drugged driving. The plan encourages health care professionals to ask patients questions about drug use during routine treatment so that early intervention is possible. It also helps more states set up electronic databases to identify doctors who are over prescribing addictive pain killers.
The strategy outlines five-year goals to reduce drug use and its consequences:
• Reduce the rate of youth drug use by 15 percent
• Decrease drug use among young adults by 10 percent
• Reduce the number of chronic drug users by 15 percent
• Reduce the incidence of drug-induced deaths by 15 percent
• Reduce the prevalence of drugged driving by 10 percent
The 2010 National Drug Control Strategy and supporting information and materials are available online
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