CELEBRITIES URGE ADDICTS' TREATMENT EXPANSION

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It took courage for Buzz Aldrin to become part of
the first manned mission to the moon. But he said Tuesday it took more
courage to undertake his mission to sobriety.

"It was the most significant challenge of my life," said the former Apollo
astronaut, one of several celebrities who have struggled with alcohol or
drug abuse and who testified before a Senate panel, urging lawmakers to
enact legislation that would expand treatment opportunities for addicts.

At the same hearing, another set of witnesses urged the panel to increase
by $100 million, to $440 million, spending on Alzheimer's disease research
next year.

The Alzheimer's Association estimates that as baby boomers age, up to 14
million people could develop the degenerative brain disease early in the
next century, straining Medicare and Medicaid.

The witnesses on drug and alcohol abuse backed legislation introduced by
Sen. Paul Wellstone, a Minnesota Democrat, and Rep. Jim Ramstad, a
Minnesota Republican and former alcoholic.

Many health insurance plans do not cover substance abuse or offer few
benefits. The Wellstone-Ramstad bill would require health plans to provide
the same coverage for substance abuse as they do for other diseases.

A similar law, requiring parity for severe mental diseases, was enacted in
1996 and went into effect this year.

A study released Tuesday by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA) found that parity for mental health and substance
abuse services would raise family premiums by less than 1 percent for plans
that tightly manage care and typically by 3.6 percent for health plans
overall.

The hearing, before the Senate Appropriations subcommittee in charge of
health research spending, chaired by Pennsylvania Republican Arlen Specter,
coincided with the March 29-31 airing of a three-part Public Broadcasting
Service series called "Moyers on Addiction: Close to Home."

Journalist Bill Moyers and his son, William Cope Moyers, were among the
witnesses who told their family's story. The younger Moyers is a former
addict who credits his recovery in part to his ability to get treatment
many people cannot afford.

"We must put an accurate face on addiction," William Cope Moyers said. He
said he wanted to combat the idea that addiction was a moral weakness, not
a disease.

"I grew up in the middle-class suburbs, was raised by two parents who gave
me all the emotional, financial and spiritual support I needed, graduated
from college and held good jobs. And still my brain was hijacked by
alcohol and drugs," he said.

"America needs a new metaphor for the war on drugs," Bill Moyers said. He
recalled that when his son developed an addiction, he did not declare war
on him. Instead, the family sought help.

Copyright © 1998 Reuters Limited.