MARSHAL THE FORCES - METH CZAR NEEDED TO FIGHT SCOURGE?

Does Utah need a meth czar? Absent that position, an often disparate
group of government agencies, treatment providers and law enforcement
officials take a piecemeal approach to solving Utah's methamphetamine
scourge.

They're "white-knuckling" when it comes to cutting off both the
seemingly endless supply of - and voracious demand for - the drug. The
financial costs are tapping already squeezed budgets.

The social costs to those whose lives are shattered by the insidious
crystal are immeasurable. "As the number of people addicted to this
dangerous drug rises, so does the number of victims it creates," said
Lana Taylor, Salt Lake County deputy district attorney who prosecutes
meth cases. Every segment of the population is affected by drug
addiction, either directly or by the property crimes and violence that
occur as a result, Taylor said. "Most affected are the children of
substance abusers.

Across the country people are beginning to recognize that
drug-endangered children are victims who deserve to be rescued."

The Salt Lake Meth Initiative is a good start.

Funded by a federal community-oriented policing grant, the program
brings 30 government agencies together.

But it operates only in Salt Lake City. "It's obvious we still have a
lot of work," said Marjean Searcy, meth initiative coordinator. An
expanded program under a meth czar probably could go a long way in
broadening the scope. "We need to attack from all different angles,"
said Robin Arnold-Williams, Utah Department of Human Services
director. Specific recommendations from a variety of sources include:

. More publicly funded treatment beds, especially for mothers who
likely won't seek help if it means separation from their children.

. Passage of the Drug Offender Reform Act, which seeks to treat rather
than punish drug users.

Transitional housing to aid those who are "white knuckling" in a
drug-filled environment while waiting for treatment.

. Expanded collaborative programs like the Salt Lake Meth
Initiative.

. A health insurance parity for substance abuse.

. More funding for successful prison drug rehab programs like
Excell.

. Expanded drug courts, including family and dependency drug
court.

These courts are one known successful quantity in an otherwise
sobering substance-abuse arena. An expanded meth initiative couldn't
be solely the prosecution of meth cooks and dope pushers, although
that certainly would be an integral part. Attacking the demand for
meth through prevention and intervention would be a more sure way to
produce noticeable, long-term results. Keeping people off meth would
cut down the demand.

Needed: money
Currently, the need for treatment far outpaces the funding for
treatment. Prisons and jails are bulging with addicts.

Hundreds of neglected and abused children are being placed in foster
care. Almost to a person, those dealing with meth and its related
problems say they need one thing: money.

That and perhaps a change in attitude about drugs users. Money for
treatment.

Money for prevention. Money for resources. Not just money
indiscriminately thrown at programs.

But money wisely placed where it can turn around lives and save future
costs, both monetary and human. "We haven't done a very good job of
making this a public health issue," said Gary Baker, director of
Cornerstone Counseling in Salt Lake City. But that, treatment
professionals and substance-abuse administrators say, is what meth
addiction is. They say it's no different than other illnesses such as
heart disease or diabetes that people bring on themselves. Like mental
illness, drug abuse has a stigma that is hard for taxpayers and
lawmakers to get past. "Although treatment, child welfare and,
increasingly, criminal justice professionals are generally attuned to
the scope of the challenges facing people in recovery, the general
public and elected officials who make the funding decisions need to
understand that there are no cheap or quick fixes," said Tina Rich,
Cornerstone Counseling coordinator for adult substance-abuse treatment
programs. A few years ago, mental health care advocates in a long,
hard, hard struggle successfully fought for equal health insurance
coverage for mental and physical ailments.

Substance abuse, too, must be recognized and treated like a disease,
service providers say. Unless drug abuse is required coverage under
health insurance plans, taxpayers will continue to pay for the public
treatment system, said Pat Fleming, Salt Lake County substance-abuse
services director. "We need parity in health-care insurance for
substance abuse.

It's the No. 1 thing to take (the burden) off taxpayers' back," he
said.

Treatment or jail? Karen Williams, Odyssey House women and children's
program director, said the state has a "lock them up" attitude when it
comes to drug abusers. Dollars, she said, should go to treatment, not
incarceration. Prosecutors like Salt Lake County deputy district
attorney Taylor, though, say a little jail time isn't all bad. "The
biggest benefit to incarceration is just the incapacitation to use,"
she said. Those in the substance-abuse service community will again
lobby for the Drug Offender Reform Act in the 2005 Legislature. The
measure, which would expand treatment services and drug courts, didn't
pass last session largely due to its $16.6 million price tag over
three years. The bill proposes to create 2,069 prison treatment slots,
2,632 public treatment slots and 250 drug court slots over three
years. The plan doesn't address meth abuse specifically, but many
users who currently don't have the opportunity for treatment would get
it. Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said the proposal has been a
tough sell with the Legislature. But it's "far cheaper" to put money
into treatment than building more prison space, he said. He intends to
be among those pushing for the bill. "The bottom line is, it makes
more sense fiscally," Shurtleff said. Drug abuse services providers
see it this way: Incarceration and foster care costs for a woman with
two children approach $100,000 a year. Damage to the family and society?

Beyond cost. Family treatment for a woman with two children runs about
$15,000 a year. Benefit to the family and society?

Beyond measure. "Treatment does work," said Fleming, noting every $1
spent saves $6 in theft and victim losses, court costs and public
assistance. "The best prevention is treatment for mom and dad."

Rescuing families Special consideration might have to be given for
single mothers whose marginal vocational skills make it difficult to
provide for their children. "Especially important is funding for
individuals, primarily, women, who have limited time for regaining
custody of children and may have to wait for a treatment bed or slot,"
Rich said. Having to wait two months for treatment puts parents behind
from the outset. It hinders their ability to get clean because they're
likely hanging with their dope-using friends while in limbo.

Furthermore, it hinders their chances to be reunited with their
children placed in state custody. The clock starts ticking as soon as
the state takes them away. Mothers have about 15 months to get cleaned
up or at least be making substantial progress to get them back.
Williams and others say that isn't enough time because meth recovery
takes anywhere from 12 to 24 months. "Child welfare guidelines do not
mesh with drug rehabilitation," said Tracy Mills, guardian ad litem.
Casey Christopherson, coordinator of the 4th District Family Drug
Court, said it is possible for parents to be reunited with children in
the state-imposed time frame but notes there are drawbacks. "It's like
that (treatment) clock goes really slow and the other clock (court)
goes really fast. It doesn't give people a lot of time," he said. More
treatment beds and expanded drug courts would give parents the chance
to get into the program without losing critical time. Another key to
combating meth abuse is cooperation among criminal justice,
corrections, treatment, housing, vocational rehabilitation and child
welfare. The Salt Lake Meth Initiative has been recognized as one of
the more innovative programs in the country.

It brought law enforcement and treatment providers to the same table
for the first time. It helped pass drug-endangered child legislation,
increase public awareness of the meth problem and fostered creation of
a women and children's treatment center. Still to be pursued,
initiative director Marjean Searcy said, is research on how meth
exposure effects children, strategies to slow the meth trade and
leveraging prevention and training dollars.

Coming Sunday

Almost everyone has a methamphetamine story. The six-day series,
"Generation Meth," elicited an outpouring of e-mails, telephone calls
and letters from readers. Some used. Others know someone who uses. And
some have seen how the drug can snuff out a promising life. On Sunday,
the Deseret Morning News will publish some of their responses,
including the story of a family coping with the death of a young
mother. The paper will also briefly look at a meth-related crime that
happened within the past couple of weeks, underscoring the state's
meth epidemic.