The following is an excerpt from a blog post by David Rosenbloom, Director of Join Together, an organization supporting community-based efforts to advance effective alcohol and drug policy, prevention, and treatment since 1991.
…In the early 1900’s negative and hateful stereotypes about who used heroin, cocaine, marijuana and alcohol were codified into law, and it seems to me these stereotypes continue to drive policy. Doctors were actively discouraged from treating people with addiction. Almost any mention or teaching about addiction disappeared from medical training and practice. Since 1914 federal policy has discouraged doctors from treating addiction by…
David Bloom also states that only 15% of those in need reach AA meetings and/or free-standing specialty treatment centers. Clearly we must act now. Read the rest of David Bloom’s piece and do what you can to close the treatment gap.
