Treatment Access Tough for Rural Methamphetamine Users
Experts say that addiction treatment works for methamphetamine users, but those who live in rural areas — including regions most affected by meth abuse — often don't have access to treatment, the Arkansas News Bureau reported June 29.
Leah Heaston, a treatment program director from rural Indiana, recently told members of the House Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy, and Human Resources that not only is access a problem — most communities have no public transportation — but programs located in remote areas have trouble finding and keeping qualified staff. Inpatient treatment and detoxification services also are limited, she said.
Witnesses told the committee that more drug courts are needed in rural communities, as well.
