METH BILL IS ONLY A TEMPORARY BAND-AID

As a recovered former abuser of crack cocaine and methamphetamine (clean
more than 11 years now), I humbly submit the question for West Virginia
legislators should be, "Will limiting sales of decongestants do anything to
reduce the amount of methamphetamine abuse in our state?"

My personal experience, along with that of the couple thousand drug abusers
I've worked with during the past decade in treatment and recovery settings,
suggests the answer is at best a temporary "Yes."

If equal priority is not given to reducing demand, your residents with
methamphetamine abuse problems will simply score their product from
enterprising black market drug dealers.

Those dealers will not be deterred by the legislative band-aids of
restricting cold medicine sales and setting up an expensive and expansive
pharmaceutical database.

It's time for more sensible alternatives. We need to increase access to
strong stimulants so that the illegal market for amphetamines will be reduced.

And we need to transfer the monies currently used to incarcerate drug
abusers into programs that allow treatment on demand for any drug abuser
who wants it. Such treatment should be available regardless of the drug of
abuse.

Stephen Heath

Public Relations Director

Drug Policy Forum of Florida

Clearwater, Fla.