DRUG FIGHT

New Law Will Help, But Treatment Needed

Kentuckians can at least take heart that efforts to combat drug abuse
have not yet fallen prey to the bitter partisanship that seems to have
poisoned the state Capitol's drinking water and paralyzed progress.

One of the few accomplishments that the just-adjourned legislature can
claim is expanding the role of the state's database on addictive
prescription drugs.

The new law will allow health officials and the medical licensure
board to use the database for the first time to track suspicious
prescription patterns.

It also makes it easier for police agencies to share information from
the database known as the Kentucky All Schedule Prescription
Electronic Reporting System.

KASPER's expanded role won't stop the problem, as Attorney General
Greg Stumbo acknowledges, but he says it will stop the problem from
getting worse. And even that would be something.

Widespread OxyContin abuse seems to be creeping westward from the
mountains, according to what's being heard by the team developing a
drug control plan for Gov. Ernie Fletcher.

Fletcher's Drug Control Policy Summit heard from folks in Lexington
yesterday and is in Danville today as part of its 16-meeting sweep of
the state.

The local gatherings have consistently identified lack of treatment as
a major hindrance. And they're right.

Busting addicts who sell a few pills at a time or make methamphetamine
in their basements won't put a dent in the demand for illicit drugs as
long as the offenders go home still addicted.

Kentucky suffers from a severe shortage of detoxification and
long-term treatment, as well as after-support and monitoring once the
offenders are home.

This state is one of just 21 where Medicaid pays nothing for drug
treatment for adults, even though every $1 spent on treatment saves an
estimated $4.61 in criminal-justice costs.

Lt. Gov. Steve Pence's 51-member team wants to have a plan to the
governor by June. Treatment will have to be a major ingredient.

Coming up with the money to pay for expanded treatment will put the
bipartisan accord on drug policy to the test. But anyone who's serious
about dealing with Kentucky's pervasive drug problems also must be
willing to find a way to pay for treatment.