Pubdate: Sat, 24 Feb 2007
Source: Evening Standard (London, UK)
Copyright: 2007 Associated Newspapers Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/914
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)

GPS' BUDGETS CUT AS ADDICTS GET UKP12M TO WEAN THEM OFF HEROIN

Budgets for family doctors and other essential NHS treatments have 
been cut by UKP12million in order to buy methadone for heroin addicts 
in prison.

The controversial new programme represents a move away from trying to 
get prisoners off drugs - the major cause of reoffending - to simply 
allowing them to continue their addiction at the taxpayers' expense.

It is funded by taking money from NHS Primary Care Trusts which run 
GP surgeries, walk-in treatment centres and community health projects.

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The Integrated Drug Treatment scheme, which is being tried out in 45 
prisons, is likely to be expanded to jails all over the country next year.

Seventeen prisons are currently running the full programme, 
prescribing the heroin substitute to wean inmates off the Class A 
drug and also giving them counselling.

But the remaining 28 jails distribute methadone without providing any 
psychological or psychiatric support.

Former Tory Home Office Minister Ann Widdecombe said: "This is an odd 
order of priorities at a time when not enough money is available for 
drugs to treat Alzheimer's and blindness.

"Giving methadone to addicts in prison is not a good use of scarce 
resources. What's more, it is not a particularly effective method of 
treatment."

Some prison experts have privately admitted that getting prisoners 
off drugs in jail may cause them to take fatal overdoses when they 
are released.

They also fear a repeat of last year's case in which 200 heroin 
addicts behind bars were awarded UKP700,000 out-of-court compensation 
after accusing prison chiefs of forcing them to go through 'cold 
turkey' rather than giving them heroin substitutes to wean them off 
their addiction more slowly.

That case set a legal precedent, making prison governors reluctant to 
order any short-sharp-shock treatment programmes.

The Department of Health confirmed Primary Care Trusts have put 
UKP12million into the scheme so far while the Home Office has given 
another UKP5million.

Last year Hammersmith and Fulham Primary Care Trust in West London 
spent UKP125,786 on methadone for inmates at Wormwood Scrubs prison. 
The bill for next year is expected to be nearly UKP170,000.

Brian Caton, of the Prison Officers' Association, said: "There seems 
to be a move towards methadone. But some inmates respond very badly 
to it. The greater need is for long-term rehabilitation once 
prisoners have been released."

A Department of Health spokes-man said: "In prisons, methadone is 
regarded as part of a structured range of interventions.

"We want to get people off drugs and the prison environment provides 
an opportunity to do that."
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman