WE'RE STILL THREE PILLARS SHORT OF A WORKING PLAN

Crack open the outrage-o-meters: Another free ride for drug addicts is
on the way.

At least, that's how many people will feel about the latest move to
stop the spread of disease among the region's illicit drug users.

Starting this spring, the Ministry of Health will be funding the
distribution of sterile surgical tubing that can be attached to the
end of crack pipes.

The aim is to stop the spread of hepatitis C, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis
and syphilis, which can be contracted through the sharing of drug pipes.

"People who smoke crack often burn their lips and have sores on their
lips, and that sore can have blood in it," explains Dr. Perry Kendall,
B.C.'s chief medical officer.

The mouthpieces will be available to the province's five health
authorities. Fraser Health officials have not yet decided if they will
request them.

The protective pipe cover is just the latest initiative designed to
mitigate the negative health consequences of drug abuse. Other
programs for addicts include needle exchanges; Insite - where users
can inject drugs in a clean environment supervised by health
professionals; and NAOMI (North American Opiate Medication
Initiative), a research project that provides prescription heroin to
chronic users enrolled in the program.

All of these measures have received ample public criticism and face
extinction as the federal political pendulum swings once again to the
right.

How much more pandering to people who "choose" their misery will
occur, opponents wonder.

Well, here's another way of looking at the proliferation of such
programs: What happened to the other three pillars?

The so-called four pillar drug strategy was pioneered by the City of
Vancouver in response to the tragic situation in the Downtown
Eastside. But its premise - combatting addiction with
prevention/education, treatment, harm reduction and enforcement - is a
sound strategy endorsed by medical professionals and law enforcement
members alike.

In Surrey, the "four strands" approach to fighting drug abuse is
rolled into the city's crime-reduction initiative, and includes the
creation of community courts for addicts, with the idea of offering
treatment over jail, and "sobering centres" where people who are drunk
or high on drugs can be helped.

All well and good, but the fact is, the reason harm reduction
initiatives seem so prominent is because they are largely alone in the
wilderness.

Enforcement? The courts are still a revolving door for mid- and
high-level drug dealers, the effects of prevention programs in schools
won't be seen for years, and treatment? Try getting a detox bed if you
want to get clean.

True, the Creekside Withdrawal Management Centre opened last April
across from Surrey Memorial Hospital. It includes 30 beds for drug and
alcohol detoxification - 24 for adults and six for youth.

But Creekside replaces Burnaby's Maple Cottage, which supported 1,200
people annually. It's merely a shift in services, not an addition.

The only other drug and alcohol treatment facility in the region - The
Phoenix Centre - has no detox beds.

The cost of caring for hepatitis C patients in B.C. averages about
$100 million a year. The crack mouthpieces will cost just pennies each.

Treating the myriad medical issues of those suffering from addiction
costs the system upwards of $45,000 per addict annually.

In the absence of other options, harm reduction measures are not only
a good idea, they're a good deal.