Title

"Cover Story" piece on the over-reaction to fatal methadone overdoses in Portlan

Authors

Chris Barry

Source

Portland Phoenix

Date

9-27-2002

Pages

1, 18-19

Abstract

"Cover Story" piece on the over-reaction to fatal methadone overdoses in Portland, which means tighter rules on a drug universally accepted to treat opiate addictions. Since January, 23 people have fatally overdosed on opiates in Portland and the media has linked nine of the deaths to methadone. For the past three decades, methadone has been used to safely wean addicts from heroin and painkillers like OxyContin. According to the National Institutes of Health, clinic-based, out-patient treatment, accompanied by counseling and other health services, is the most successful strategy currently available to battle opiate dependency. With details about the methadone-treatment controversy in the Greater Portland area, the for-profit clinics that administer the program, and how the local media has sensationalized the issue.

Subjects

Drug abuse, Methadone maintenance

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