Human802 t1_jc78pnr wrote
Excellent idea. The fent and heroin problem won’t be solved without drastic measures, and undermining the black market with government regulating and distribution of heroin is an important step.
imdoingmyroutine t1_jc7ylrk wrote
Unfortunately that isn't what's being proposed. Actually wild to me that anyone thinks there is any possible way to stop overdose deaths short of this at this point. I spent the better part of the last 10 years working with syringe exchange program and narcan distribution starting back when it was cutting edge pilot programs. I thought widespread naloxone distribution would make a huge dent in the overdose problem but it has literally just gotten worse. It's fucked. The drug supply is just so deadly at this point. Heroin hasn't even existed in 5 years basically. Now if you give everyone using heroin clean dope it's not going to stop overdose deaths but I think it should make a real dent. To me saving lives in the most important part but there are much stronger arguments to be made on saving money and reducing crime. Shit. Free heroin for everyone who wants it? That would cost nothing and just stop 50% + of crime overnight. Just feels like such a absolute no brainer to me at this point that's it's crazy that it still seems like a radical idea to people. There really isn't any difference between giving someone heroin and giving them methadone. Never has been except stigma and people's desire to have a shame based and punitive response to maladaptive behaviors.
Lanky-Kale-9462 t1_jdbm4e2 wrote
I know very little, if nothing about the subject, so please forgive my ignorance. Your comment regarding methadone being the same as heroin has me wondering . Does methadone eliminate the chance of OD?
Also methadone is used to eventually get people drug free correct? If so, why do we need to make heroin legal? If methadone is already a legal substance, why not hand out methadone to people on a regular basis, without restriction?
I think there is, or perhaps was, a methadone clinic in Burlington correct? Is that program restrictive? Meaning only a small number of people are allowed to participate at a time? Or perhaps the treatment, has to physically be administered to participants by a professional? There by forcing participants to have to travel daily (by appointment) to the clinic? Is clinic open 24/7? Are emergency “appointments “ available?
Depending on the answers to the questions above, one could quickly see how getting treatment, could become problematic for some. Especially, those who are trying very hard to live their lives as “normally”as possible. I have heard of repeated stories of people being addicted to heroin, and even those closest to them have no idea. These people lead professional lives, and no one would ever guess that they are suffering from addiction.
If most of the above is true, then sadly it would be logical for people seek out heroin on the street, rather than methadone from a clinic, as it may be, just easier to get.
imdoingmyroutine t1_jdcegt3 wrote
Unfortunately people can still have a fatal overdose on methadone though it is a lot less common to happen accidentally vs fentanyl overdosing.
I can't speak to the clinic in Burlington but clinics are usually highly restrictive especially in the beginning of treatment. You have to show up at a certain time to receive your dose everyday. If you miss it you can start to be in withdrawal. Thankfully another drug available is called Suboxone and that is something that people take on their own from home. It isn't always as effective as methadone but it's the same idea of maintenance therapy. The goal with maintenance therapy is not always to get the person drug free as in off the medication. If it is effective for them many will take it for years and decades. The unfortunate problem is these drugs don't work for everyone. If you were to just provide the pure version of the drug they already use it would have similar outcomes except a much broader benefit to society at large.
Rogers_Ebert t1_jc9rogo wrote
Government regulating and distributing heroin? Are you on heroin?
Human802 t1_jc9za0k wrote
No I’m on that shit called reality where I keep seeing people I grew up with destroyed by addiction. The drug war failed, and our neurological understanding of addiction has increased. We are not ever going to just arrest this problem away.
Rogers_Ebert t1_jca01c4 wrote
So how is the government distributing heroin going to help addicts?
Human802 t1_jca0vua wrote
Under cut the legal market, get them a clean supply this will lower the overdose rate. This will lower crime rates by removing funding for organized crime.
Then you have patients using medication that can then be helped to ween off or manage their addiction. Then they are no longer criminals and get the economic and mental health support to rejoin society.
This has been tried with success in places like Vancouver CA, or in Portugal. The basic idea is treating people like they are sick and need help, instead of just criminal addicts, gets better results.
It seems obvious that nothing attempted in VT or America in my lifetime has worked, at all, even a little. Time to rethink the whole situation.
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