Substance Abuse Treatment Found Lacking in Correctional Facilities Psychiatric News, June 02, 2000 The number of adult and juvenile offenders with substance abuse problems continues to grow. A new government report shows, however, that too few inmates receive adequate treatment. The need for substance abuse services in adult and juvenile correctional facilities far exceeds the supply. A new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) indicates that only 40 percent of these facilities offer any addiction treatment despite the rise in the number of crimes related to substance abuse. The report notes that about half of the inmates in state and federal prisons in 1997 reported being under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time they committed their offense. However, only 11 percent of the 1.6 million adult and juvenile offenders in facilities with substance abuse treatment in 1997 received services. Treatment was defined as detoxification, group or individual counseling, rehabilitation, and methadone or other pharmaceutical treatment, according to the report. Drug abuse violations in 1998 accounted for about 30 percent of all arrests nationwide. In 35 major cities, about two-thirds of adults and more than half of the young men arrested in 1998 tested positive for at least one drug when arrested, according to the report. "The [Clinton] administration’s war on drugs has done little to stem the supply of drugs," said Henry Weinstein, M.D., APA’s liaison to the National Commission of Correctional Healthcare. "Our focus should be on the demand for drugs, meaning offering treatment programs wherever appropriate, especially in adult and juvenile correctional facilities." Ninety-five percent of adult and juvenile correctional facilities in all states responded to a 1996 or 1997 survey from SAMHSA. Of the 7,564 responding facilities, 129 were federal prisons, 1,187 were state prisons, 3,121 were jails, and 3,127 were juvenile facilities, according to the report. While 93 percent of federal prisons provided some type of substance abuse treatment, only 56 percent of state prisons did so. Significantly fewer jails (33 percent) and juvenile facilities (34 percent) offered substance abuse treatment, states the report. However, a high percentage of all facilities offered individual or group counseling to offenders with substance abuse problems. In addition, about 80 percent of state prisons, 50 percent of jails, and 60 percent of juvenile facilities provided assessments for substance abuse treatment, drug testing, self-help groups, and education/awareness materials, according to the report. About 87 percent of federal prisons provided these services, noted the report. "Targeting the 50 to 80 percent of arrestees who test positive for drugs is a smart way to reduce crime and serve the public health," said Barry McCaffrey, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, in a SAMHSA press release. McCaffrey conceded that the approach of incarcerating drug offenders "has been a failed social policy. Our goal now is to encourage federal, state, and local jurisdictions to expand alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent offenders and treatment for drug-dependent offenders in all phases of the criminal justice system." The Office of Justice Programs is working with state and local governments to implement a range of services including drug testing and assessments, drug-court programs to provide supervised treatment of nonviolent offenders, residential substance abuse treatment for prison and jail inmates, and supervising the reentry of ex-offenders into the community, according to Mary Lou Leary, acting assistant attorney general for the Office of Justice Programs. SAMHSA has proposed allocating $10 million in Fiscal 2001 to provide substance abuse and mental health services for ex-offenders returning to their communities. The report notes that most inmates were treated for substance abuse while housed among the general prison population rather than in specialized residential treatment units. The report, "Substance Abuse Treatment in Adult and Juvenile Correctional Facilities," is available on the SAMHSA Web site at .