NALTREXONE PROGRAM UNDER CLOUD AFTER SUBSIDY DECISION

The head of the drug rehabilitation centre at Sydney's Westmead Hospital
says its naltrexone program for heroin addicts is threatened because of the
Federal Government's refusal to subsidise the treatment.

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee on Friday decided the drug
would be subsidised for alcoholics under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
(PBS) but not for heroin addicts.

The subsidy would reduce the cost of a packet from about $200 to $20.

The director of Westmead's Drug and Alcohol Service, Jon Currie, says the
decision is illogical.

Dr Currie says naltrexone is a worthwhile treatment, with six out of 10
patients on the Westmead program succesfully quitting heroin.

"At the moment, we are desperately trying to fund that through the hospital
budget which will not be possible for any prolonged period of time," he said.

"So unfortunately, one of the things which might happen is that without the
PBS subsidy, the program will be seriously limited or even have to stop."

Dr Currie has support from the other side of the country, with George
O'Neil from Perth Naltrexone Clinic saying the PBS committee has ignored
overwhelming evidence in its decision.

Dr O'Neil says the committee decided to grant the subsidy only to
alcoholics, despite WA trials showing the drug to be effective in treating
heroin addiction.

Dr O'Neil says unsuccesful naltrexone trials in the eastern states seem to
have influenced the committee's decision to exclude heroin addicts from the
scheme, due to start in February.

"The doctors who are alcohol and drug experts in the eastern states have
got an enormous amount of experience in using methadone and almost no
experience in using naltrexone," he said.

"They're the people who have been in jobs for 20 years where they're in
charge of committees and they're the people who are saying naltrexone
doesn't work."