COSTLY BUDGET CUT

Reducing Drug Treatment For Prisoners Hurts State's Bottom Line

Florida's prison system has a substance-abuse problem, and it's about
to get worse.

Thousands of inmates -- plus many more under "community control" --
need drug and alcohol treatment, yet the available funding for the
remainder of this fiscal year was cut by $13 million. The decision,
made during November's special legislative session and just now taking
effect, leaves the Department of Corrections with less than half the
money it had anticipated for treatment programs.

What this means is that in all but a few state prisons, the only
"treatment" for inmates will be voluntary support groups, such as
Alcoholics Anonymous.

The impact doesn't stop at the prison walls. Legions of people under
community supervision and probation will now face longer waits for
treatment, raising the odds that they will relapse into substance
abuse, criminal behavior and prison.

The price of that failure is high; prison alone -- never mind the
court expenses and the damage to family and victims -- costs Florida
$18,500 a year, per inmate. That's a tough break for a state in a
budget crisis, especially if people come out of prison with the same
problems that dragged them in.

With what it costs to house one prisoner, Sarasota County's drug court
can treat seven people -- providing a full year of nonresidential
therapy, two group sessions weekly, counseling, drug tests and regular
court supervision. Which person do you think is more likely to become
a functioning member of society: the drug-court graduate, or the
prisoner who learns nothing behind bars but some new ways to commit
crime?

More pertinently, which would you rather have in your community?

Studies indicate that comprehensive treatment sharply reduces the
chance that inmates will return to prison once they have served their
sentence. Treatment also helps keep them off drugs and alcohol,
enhancing the likelihood that they'll be able to hold a job and
contribute to society. There will be individual failures, of course,
but each success saves a fortune in human misery, sparing society the
costly side effects of crime and substance abuse.

Florida's cash crunch leaves no choice; funds must be cut somewhere.
But let's not delude ourselves: In the long run, slashing substance-
abuse programs -- by 62 percent in this case -- will hurt the bottom
line, not help it. If lawmakers are looking to save money, the answer
is clear: Restore the $13 million, as soon as possible.