"THE MAYOR'S CRUSADE AGAINST METHADONE"

According to an editorial in the New York Times, New York City Mayor
Rudolph Giuliani's plan to wean methadone patients from their treatment,
eliminating city controlled methadone therapy, is contrary to the medical
advice offered by scientific panels, including panels at the National
Institutes of Health and the Institutes at the National Academy of
Sciences.

The authors assert that the plan, which would eliminate 2,000 methadone
treatment slots, could lead to increased difficulties for patients.

Some experts assert that methadone-to-abstinence programs are not always
viable and that many heroin addicts need to undergo methadone treatment for
many years before they are able to abstain.

Giuliani contends that methadone treatment acts as a substitution of
dependencies.

The editors assert that the therapy is worthwhile since methadone patients
have "shown decreased drug use, lower crime rates, better social
functioning and reduced likelihood of transmitting AIDS and hepatitis
viruses through
needle sharing." Giuliani should first test whether methadone-to-abstinence
programs are viable on a small-scale before instituting the program
outright, the authors conclude.