PROGRAMS HONORED FOR HELPING TO FIGHT ADDICTIONS

WASHINGTON (AP) -- In Tarrytown, New York, teen-agers learn to how to
avoid drugs, alcohol and tobacco. Denver nurses visit pregnant women
at risk of substance abuse. A Seattle-based program uses dinosaur
puppets to help youngsters with behavior problems.

These projects, cited by the government as among the nation's best
hope for fighting addictions, were honored Thursday by the nation's
acting drug policy director and the Health and Human Services
Department.

"The federal seal of approval ... is a message to communities that
they should insist upon and work toward the same level of excellence
in substance abuse prevention," HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson said.
"As a nation, we can settle for no less."

The projects, selected after a rigorous scientific review of more
than 200 prevention programs, are part of the department's efforts to
identify and disseminate information about science-based prevention
programs that consistently have demonstrated beneficial results.

The programs are chosen because they follow carefully researched
treatment methods and have worked in several settings.

For instance, the Incredible Years Series of Seattle involved more
than 600 families. Researchers found that the parents of the
children, ages 3-10, were able to curb the anti-social behavior that
often develops into substance abuse later in life.

Department officials have been rewarding programs for 15 years. But
for the first time last year, officials decided to highlight programs
especially for their potential to work in several communities.

"The adoption of effective drug abuse prevention programs by
communities nationwide will significantly reduce the toll of drug
abuse and addiction on our society, " said Edward H. Jurith, acting
director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Many of the programs were started with federal research funds, said
officials with HHS' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration.

"We are proud to honor their efforts and we are inspired by the
life-changing impact that these programs have had on so many
communities, families and individuals," said Ruth Sanchez-Way, who
directs prevention projects for the HHS agency.