Pubdate: Wed, 16 Apr 2003 Source: Tennessean, The (TN) 1630185 Copyright: 2003 The Tennessean Contact: http://www.tennessean.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/447 CHEAP TALK ON DRUGS If Tennessee legislators want to swap some methadone funding for epilepsy funds, they should do so for the right reasons, not because of political posturing. The decision last week by the Senate General Welfare Committee to cut $186,500 from TennCare funding for methadone treatment to restore money cut from the Epilepsy Foundation is penny wise and pound foolish. Coupled with matching federal funds, the methadone program would lose $524,000. The assertion by Sen. Rusty Crowe, who targeted the funding, that state spending on methadone was meant to "keep drug addicts happy" shows a serious lack of understanding about addiction. Legislators don't want to be accused of coddling drug users. But treating drug addiction is tough business. Methadone happens to be one solution that works. It allows addicts to get their fix while gradually weaning them from addiction. More importantly, the treatment allows addicts to continue working and contributing to their families. They are less likely to commit a crime to feed their habit and more likely to contribute tax dollars to their communities and this state. By one estimate, every dollar spent on treatment is returned as much as four to seven times over. Certainly, the care of those stricken with epilepsy is no less urgent. But the foundation has other resources from which to raise money. When state officials began looking for ways to trim the budget, those areas that could raise funds more readily from outside sources were a natural place to look. Sen. David Fowler, R-Signal Mountain, criticized the methadone program as unregulated with few controls on patients who seek treatment. Tennessee regulates, rather than actually runs, six clinics in the state. If there are problems, state health officials certainly should investigate. So too, should claims by Fowler that the methadone program is attracting addicts from other states. But when senators criticize addicts for taking advantage of a situation, they should consider their own willingness to bad-mouth worthy health programs for cheap political gain. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth