EFFECTIVE REHAB PROGRAM MERITS GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

I wonder if Saskatchewan taxpayers are aware that our current
government began building "Operation Hope," a drug rehabilitation
centre, approximately two years ago to a sweet tune of $4 million? Do
taxpayers know the success rate of any government-run rehab centre is
a mere seven per cent?

Now let's look at the statistics for the Teen Challenge Centre, which
receives absolutely no government funding because it's a "faith based"
facility.

You enter Teen Challenge and you commit to 365 days of intense drug or
alcohol treatment, versus the typical stay of somewhere between seven
and 28 days at a government structure.

Here's the incredible statistic: Teen Challenge has a success rate of
86 per cent.

So, the government spends $4 million to get a seven per cent success
rate but it won't spend a dime to get an 86 per cent success rate.
What is wrong with this picture?

Do taxpayers realize that Saskatchewan incarcerates more children per
capita than anywhere else in the industrialized world? The prison
population per capita is the highest; the drug problem is the highest,
and Saskatchewan's average in alcoholism is double the national
average. Drugs and alcohol are the No. 1 killer of kids below the age
of 25 in this province.

It's time to speak out. Call or write your MLA. We need changes --
now!

Theresa Laughren,

Rosthern