More drug programs, education needed

Each week the Cape Gazette publishes stories about people ­- children and adults ­- whose lives have been changed by drug addiction. Stories about children committing suicide out of hopelessness and infants dying from hard­-core physical abuse are not easy to write, publish or read.

But the brighter the light that shines on these problems, the sooner they will get the attention of people in positions to address the underlying issues.

Broadly speaking, there are two ways to address these problems. One way is to fight the crime with more police officers, more prisons, and more privately owned weapons for personal protection while mournfully accepting the deaths, injuries, property losses and broken lives left in the wake of the crimes.

The other way is to accept addiction as a pervasive mental health issue in our society, deserving serious medical treatment and support efforts to get at root causes, and then make improvements to reduce the crimes, violence, injuries and deaths.

The second way is certainly the more compassionate approach. Easy math, however, would also likely show the cost of more social workers, treatment programs and support centers is far less than the cost of more police officers, enforcement equipment and prisons.

There are already parts of our nation where more public dollars are going into drug treatment programs while prison budgets are being reduced. Treatment programs and social workers will never completely replace police officers and prisons.

But it’s time for the balance to be recalibrated and for Delaware to join this more cost-effective movement, whether measured in dollars or lives saved.

The local epidemic of babies being born with opiate and opioid addictions couldn’t make the seriousness any more clear. Social workers and police officers repeatedly say the problem is growing. Recent stories in the Cape Gazette indicate that state addiction and family services programs need review and more resources to address the expanding problems.

State funding for family services and addiction services must grow to meet this rising need, while educators at every level must help students understand how drugs can impact them, their families and their friends.