"‘Drug Courts,’ Treatment Focus Of New White House Opioid Strategy" - Dennis Thompson
Steering opioid addicts toward treatment programs instead of prisons, while tightening federal policies on opioid prescribing, could curb the opioid epidemic, President Donald Trump's opioid crisis commission said Wednesday. To that aim, the commission's final report recommends that federal drug courts be established in all 93 federal judicial districts, with people who violate their probation diverted into a drug court rather than sent to jail. Drug courts are problem-solving courts that work with the mental health, social service and treatment communities to help addicted offenders into long-term recovery programs. "The commission's recommendation that people with substance use disorder be diverted into drug courts instead of prison is a positive step, and a humane response to this crisis," said Timothy Brennan, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry and director of the Fellowship in Addiction Medicine at the Addiction Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “It is clear that we cannot and should not jail our way out of the opioid crisis," Dr. Brennan continued. "Drug courts have proven to be successful, and it's reassuring that the commission seems to agree."
- Timothy Brennan, MD, Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, Director, Fellowship in Addiction Medicine Program, Addiction Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
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