BUPRENORPHINE PROMISING THERAPY FOR HEROIN ADDICTION

The Sun's series on the abuses of buprenorphine distorts the true
picture of an extremely promising therapy for heroin addiction. Given
the high social costs of addiction, the United States has embraced
buprenorphine as an effective treatment, after carefully examining
the experience of France and other countries. And a number of
extraordinary controls guide the use of buprenorphine in this country.

As a result, buprenorphine is extremely safe when used properly. And
thousands of people use buprenorphine appropriately and therefore
safely. It has helped them turn around their lives.

In the process, it has saved the public all the negative health
consequences and costs of heroin addiction, from HIV transmission and
emergency room visits to property crime and incarceration.

The Sun should also cover these successful stories.

Diana Morris Baltimore

The writer is director of the Open Society Institute-Baltimore, which
funds buprenorphine treatment and other drug treatment programs.