Law-enforcement officials in small-town Massachusetts and a few other states are trying a new tactic in fighting the opioid epidemic: reaching out to addicts with offers of help, Karen Brown reports for NPR.
"It's based on the idea that, for many drug users, a call to the police — for a nonfatal overdose or a drug-related crime such as theft — is the first time they get on the radar of any authority," Brown reports. "So after the immediate crisis is over, officers follow up and offer help. That could be a warm bed for the night, a referral to a recovery coach or needle-exchange program, a ride to detox. At the very least, they'll give out the overdose-rescue drug Narcan and talk about how to stay alive."
Officer John Cacela of Ware, Mass., summed it up: "We can't arrest our way out of this problem," he told Brown.
"It's based on the idea that, for many drug users, a call to the police — for a nonfatal overdose or a drug-related crime such as theft — is the first time they get on the radar of any authority," Brown reports. "So after the immediate crisis is over, officers follow up and offer help. That could be a warm bed for the night, a referral to a recovery coach or needle-exchange program, a ride to detox. At the very least, they'll give out the overdose-rescue drug Narcan and talk about how to stay alive."
Officer John Cacela of Ware, Mass., summed it up: "We can't arrest our way out of this problem," he told Brown.
from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/37DcNiR Some small-town police try a new tactic in fighting the opioid epidemic: helping drug abusers instead of arresting them - Entrepreneur Generations
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