DRUG CZAR: MORE MONEY NEEDED

Los Angeles- Congress needs to allocate more money for treatment and
prevention if it expects further headway in anti-drug efforts, the
nation's drug policy czar said Wednesday.

Congress has given a 32 percent annual increase in anti-drug efforts
from fiscal year 1999 to 2000. Drug abuse among teens has fallen, but
the problem is far from licked, said retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey.

"We are very grateful for the support we are getting, but we are not
there yet," McCaffrey said of Congress' efforts.

McCaffrey, who heads the Office of National Drug Control Policy, was
in Los Angeles for a town-hall meeting with California teens.

One of his toughest fights against drugs, McCaffrey said, is funds for
adequate treatment programs.

"People who are addicted to drugs are not undisciplined or immoral,"
he said.

His agency wants Congress to pass legislation that would require
insurance companies to include drug and alcohol treatment in health
plans.

He also called for more after-school activities such as sports
programs.

"We're not worried about 45-year-olds," he told the group. "We're
worried about teens."