This week's Throwback Sunday post focuses on a 2007 policy article by Mark Kleiman. In 2013, Kleiman was selected as the project leader to write Washington State's marijuana regulations after the drug was decriminalized through a ballot initiative. =========================== The National Interest has a lengthy article on drug policy by Mark A.R. Kleiman. I disagree … Continue reading Dopey, Boozy, Smoky—and Stupid
Category: Policy
Anti-treatment zombie stats
This 90% statistic has been frequently cited to discredit specialty addiction treatment. Ninety percent of those who enter addiction-treatment programs in the U.S. don’t receive evidence-based treatment I asked David Scheff about it several weeks back. He said it was from RAND and referred me to his book. I looked in his book and couldn't … Continue reading Anti-treatment zombie stats
It’s “changed the whole world”
A few weeks ago, I asked about how e-cigarettes might be used for other drugs and Dirk Hanson pointed out that it was already happening. The Detroit Free Press covered this segment of the pot economy: Chris Folkerts started selling electronic cigarette-like devices from the trunk of his car two years ago. Now he and … Continue reading It’s “changed the whole world”
The golden age
Keith Humphreys argues we're entering a golden age for mental health care: For most of U.S. history, employers did not provide adequate mental health benefits in the insurance packages they assembled for employees. This wasn’t a controversial policy: most labor unions were quite happy to trade “mental for dental” when they negotiated fringe benefits. But … Continue reading The golden age
Hope, empowerment, capability, connection and purpose
Hopeworks Community recently listed his core beliefs related to his recovery from mental illness: The idea was simple. There are a few core beliefs about recovery that make a difference. To the extent you are able to live them your recovery will be positively impacted. My list of core beliefs was simple: Life can get better. … Continue reading Hope, empowerment, capability, connection and purpose
How Dangerous are e-cigarettes?
A lot of cities and organizations are sorting through how to respond to the rise of e-cigarettes. Many are beginning to treat them like cigarettes, extending smoking policies to e-cigarettes. Mark Kleiman thinks this is nuts. The Los Angeles City Council just voted for a complete ban on e-cigarettes wherever real cigarettes are banned, including … Continue reading How Dangerous are e-cigarettes?
Abstinence—The Only Way to Beat Addiction?
What killed Philip Seymour Hoffman? According to Anne Fletcher, it wasn't the doctor who prescribed him the pain medication that began his relapse, it wasn't the prescribers of the combination of meds found in his body, it wasn't his discontinuing the behaviors that maintained his recovery for 23 years, it wasn't a drug dealer, and … Continue reading Abstinence—The Only Way to Beat Addiction?
It will kill people as soon as it’s released
The upcoming release of Zohydro has been getting a lot of attention: The hydrocodone-based drug is the latest in a long line of painkillers called opioid analgesics. The FDA approved the medication last fall to treat chronic pain, and it is set to become available to patients in March. The drug was approved against the advice … Continue reading It will kill people as soon as it’s released
Medication: The smart-pill oversell
Given the simultaneous explosion in ADHD diagnosis, prescribed use of stimulants and non-medical use of stimulants, maybe it's time to look at the cost/benefit ratio. We'll it's clear that the benefits aren't all that. What to make of it? Researchers are beginning to address this paradox. How can medication that makes children sit still and … Continue reading Medication: The smart-pill oversell
Addicts and Disease
Dirk Hanson has a great post on resistance to the disease model. I'm a believer in harm reduction as part of the continuum of addiction interventions, but there is often a chasm between the way harm reductionists and treatment providers frame the problem. This can make it difficult to work together. Dirk does a great … Continue reading Addicts and Disease
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