Methadone Treatment: Policies of Legal Narcotics in the U.S. Work

Criminal laws do not and cannot cure addiction. A fact we must face as a Nation in order to address our failing 'War on Drugs'. A fact that we must face as a Nation if we believe in compassion and seek to find a viable long-term solution for this affliction. A fact that we must face if we want to find socially beneficial remedies to drug problems rather than exacerbating the problems with band-aid jail sentences which cost Americans millions annually.

This trailer shows some insight about the true power of heroin addiction:


The FDA recognized this sentiment when it approved methadone treatment. Methadone is a legal synthetic narcotic. It is used to treat heroin addiction as well as addiction to narcotic painkillers. This concept in the abstract is shocking to many that know nothing about American drug laws and policies. Methadone provides opiates to addicts because they cannot live without them. Synthetic simply means that it produces the same reaction in the brain but is not made from natural poppy plants. By taking this medication heroin addicts are able to function normally in society by feeding their addiction for opiates but in a synthetic form. It has been one of the greatest steps toward treating addiction ever realized.

Methadone is one of the greatest steps toward treating addiction because the individuals who are treated with methadone are getting their “fix” and they are taken out of the illicit drug culture in order to achieve this necessity of addiction. Those using methadone are no longer required to steal, prostitute themselves, or otherwise participate in crime in order to feed their habit. They are no longer required to visit their drug dealer every day. They are able to acquire their “fix” easily and at a low cost. They do not have to worry about their dealer not being able to supply which could leave them suffering from unbearable withdrawal symptoms. They do not have run the risk of getting AIDs or other intravenous diseases because they share needles. Moreover, because they know where they can get their “fix” they do not have to spend their day as they did as an illicit addict.



The daily life of a heroin addict is a repetitive cycle with only one goal: to get that fix. Because of the nature of the brain’s dependence on heroin (and to a somewhat lesser extent, other narcotics) once an individual is addicted, there is no way to avoid this goal. It will cause a truly addicted individual to do anything in order to achieve that goal. Nothing is as important as achieving that goal. That is what we must understand when we approach this problem and determine how to deal with it as a society. We must understand that an addict has no control over the crimes they commit in order to achieve their goal to a large extent. A compassionate criminal code should and could view this type of crime as that of necessity given the mental state of the criminal. It is armed with this knowledge that we examine the benefits of methadone.

Methadone provides normalcy for those afflicted with addiction. Without opiates to quell the demands of the opiate receptors in the brain, addicts cannot function as normal human beings within our society. By providing them with this “fix” methadone allows those on the treatment to acquire gainful employment and otherwise contribute positively to society because they no longer are employed as a full-time heroin addict. Prior to their treatment on methadone, they were forced by their addiction to spend the entire day doing whatever it is they had to do in order to get their fix. Through methadone treatment, they simply have to take their medication and are freed from the requirements the illicit drug world necessitated.

Methadone is a wonderful example of how decriminalization of drugs in the United States will decrease crime and increase productivity. Those on the treatment are now free to participate positively to our society, not because we have denied them their “fix”, but rather because we have made it legal for them to get it. Although these individuals can never be restored to their preaddiction state, they are far better off on methadone treatment than as narcotic addicts. The government has decreased crime by allowing these individuals to take advantage of methadone treatment because they are no longer required to participate in an illicit market. The government has taken money out of the hands of undeserving drug dealers who used to sell these addicted individuals heroin. The government has negated the requirement of these individuals to participate in theft, prostitution and a variety of other crimes that afforded them their drug addiction. The government has obviated the need to spend much needed tax dollars on jailing these individuals for crimes they no longer have to commit to feed their addiction. The government has alleviated the risk that these individuals will overdose and die because of their drug addiction. The government has decreased the spread of AIDs and HIV in the U.S. through this drug policy. The government has created jobs and put money into the American economy through the creation of methadone clinics and the sale of a legal drug.

At which point I leave you with your thoughts.

“You can’t stop here. This is bat country.” -Hunter S. Thompson