Posted on 05/18/2018 10:04:35 PM PDT by Olog-hai
San Francisco’s mayor plans to put medical teams on the streets to distribute a drug that curbs heroin cravings in opioid addicts, an initiative he says will be the first in the country.
Mayor Mark Farrell announced Thursday he will allocate $6 million for 10 new public health clinicians to provide the opioid treatment medicine buprenorphine, known as Suboxone, directly to users.
Buprenorphine is a daily pill or dissolvable strip that reduces cravings and alleviates withdrawal symptoms. It also reduces risk of overdose.
Video and photos of people shooting up drugs in public have gone viral in recent weeks and added to San Francisco’s reputation as being overrun by addicts and homeless people.
“The opioid crisis plaguing our country is alive and visible on the streets of San Francisco. The status quo is simply unacceptable,” Farrell said. …
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
San Frensicko is so sick it’s a terminal case. And even tourist groups are telling their agents to book them elsewhere. Too much sheet on the streets. Too many aggressive smelly bums. Many are threatening too. Traffic at gridlock most hours day and even now many nights too.
I can’t see it lasting too much longer given the direction it’s headed. Either law and order comes back or the place goes up in smoke.
The concept is good. The drug will prevent withdrawal. The drug will not give the addict the high they desire. Addicts will use this drug if they can not get the heroin or fentanyl the really want. This program will fail.
The only program that works is for those that decide they must quit or die. If they reach the point of death and ask for help, they might be saved but it is rare.
For most addicts the solution is simple. Give them clean needles and access to cheap narcotics. Most of this group will self eliminate themselves from society via over dose and this is good. A small fraction will want help and society should help that small fraction.
Those that refuse help are not worthy of societies help. Their demise will make society better. Those that truly want help deserve societies help.
Looks to me like methadone part deux.
Oh,let me guess..you’re a good Christian too.
Heroin was invented to end morphine addiction. Some things never change.
Suboxone is just another opiate. The “recovering” addict may not get high from the prescribed dose, but will either use more or add other drugs. It is meant to be used as part of a program, not handed out like candy. It also is very hard to get off of. Epic fail.
Banks to give away money.
If there is an overriding Truth in human history, repeated again and again, that Truth is, "You can't force-feed people Righteousness!"
Missionaries get eaten. Martyrdom may please them, and it may provide some small comfort as the water heats up. However, they are being shat over a cliff...
Ah, a preacher who can judge salvation due to your obvious sainthood. Are addicts healed as you walk by as your shadow falls on them? What pray tell shows your obvious purity of soul besides your judgemental mouth?
Yep - Methadone killed a lot of “recovering” addicts - replacement drugs are only good for medically supervised withdrawal - after that nothing will curb the desire except long-term time without it in the system and some sort of peer support.
Two questions.
Where are the addicts getting the money to buy the drugs?
Why don’t we ever hear of drug dealers being arrested, tried and put in prison?
What is happening in San Francisco proves the old saying that you get more of what you reward (and less of what you punish)
There is no attempt to “punish” the bums and addicts in SF only fake compassion.
This new program has a budget of $6 million. How much of that is siphoned off in administration cost (another way to pay off people without having to show any positive results for the money spent).
Liberals like social chaos. They can tax and spend (keeping a bit for themselves) without really being held accountable since it is in the name of fairness, or for the children, or compassion.
Meanwhile the once great cities of our nation are becoming S***holes, and it is all Democrats fault (well Republicans as well since I seldom hear a Republican standing up against these big city policies).
No sane person should live in san fran sicko. It’s what liberalism wants to do to the rest of the country.
We should give an OD of fentanyl to each druggie.
We have the decency to put sick animals down but prefer to let these poor people die a slow painful death.
Not so fast. There are many people who come out the other side of this addiction, stronger, better and more compassionate than folks like you.
The key is that they have to want to quit. Methadone programs at least usually incorporate strict rules for showing up at a prescribed time and counseling. Suboxone enables the person to reengage with their jobs and families right away, but it carries costs and side effects of its own, and it’s very, very hard to stop. So now the profits go back to the drug companies rather than the cartels.
A prison sentence that combines a hard withdrawal (minimal drugs to stave off death), counseling and enough time to mature somewhat may be the best answer for many.
I was being sarcastic...it’s not very kind to say in effect “ just let the addicts die then.
We’re not force feeding anyone. We’re trying to keep people alive so they have a chance for recovery, physical..emotional and spiritual.
We used to just let alcoholics die.. no help, no medical treatment.
The judgementalism is the same here for opioid addicts now.
You obviously no nothing about the current, evidenced based treatment of addiction.
Nor do you know anything about the current medically assisted treatment with methadone.
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