On Jan. 1, 2015, I wrote a letter to the editor in response to a Dec. 21, 2014, editorial on a way to reduce the heroin problem.
Now you have written another editorial wanting to waste $400,000 of Schenectady County taxpayer money on another worthless program. Didn’t Prohibition teach anything? Do you disagree with my information nine months ago? If it wasn’t for confi dentiality, I could show you dozens of former addicts who are living normal, productive lives because of treatment.
I am referring to your Oct. 4 editorial, “Growing heroin crisis won’t go away without a fi ght.” In it, you support spending money on the criminal justice system rather than treatment of an illness. The diagnostic code just changed a few days ago from 304.00 to the absurd ICD-10 (F11-20).
In my opinion, the “growing heroin crisis won’t go away” because of ignorance of the disorder. The problem will decrease when knowledge prevails and treatment is supported.
JACK L. UNDERWOOD
Schenectady
The writer is a psychiatrist.
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Categories: Letters to the Editor
