Executive
Committee
Subcommittee Chairs
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| Statements
to the Press, February 26, 2007 |
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Governor’s
Council on Alcohol and Drug Programs
Addiction Day at the Capitol
OPERA Press Conference
February 26, 2007
Council Statement to the Press
I am Stephanie Soares Pump, Vice-Chair of the Governor’s
Council on Alcohol and Drug Programs. We are statutorily charged
with assessing and reporting to the Governor on the economic and
social impact of alcohol and drug abuse across sixteen state agencies.
Our 2007-2009 report, “The Domino Effect: A Business Plan
for Rebuilding Substance Abuse Prevention, Treatment and Recovery,”
chronicled the effects of three biennia of cuts. The people you
see here today represent some of the service array impacted by
those cuts.
Calling for consistency in public policy, the Council recommended
10% of distilled spirit revenues be allocated for prevention,
treatment and recovery in the Domino Effect. We fully support
SB184 and applaud the Governor for allocating 2% in his budget.
We continue to recommend 10%.
The Council also recommended a raise in the beer and wine tax,
giving micro brews an exemption per ORS 473.050. The rationale
for this step is well documented. The Council fully supports HB2535.
Oregon is at a public policy crossroads. The Council hopes that
decision makers will realize that alcohol and other drug prevention,
treatment and recovery services have been among the most deeply
eroded, with outcomes that are destructive and far reaching. The
time has come to curtail the domino effect. Fully funding prevention,
treatment and recovery will result in an immediate return on investment.
Stephanie Soares Pump
503-989-2577 cell; 971-244-1369 office
sspump@comcast.net
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Statement
of Senator Bill Morrisette, D-Springfield, on HB 2535:
It’s time for us to confront the huge cost shift to every Oregon
citizen of alcohol and drug addiction. That shift is produced
through what it costs for police courts, emergency rooms, auto accidents,
unwanted teen pregnancies, foster care, jails, prisons, medical care,
workplace accidents, lost productivity, public assistance and many
other things, all because of addiction's aftereffects.
We all pay for that cost shift in some way, through such things as
income and property taxes or higher insurance costs
It only makes sense, then, that some of those costs begin to
be paid through a fee on the product whose abuse causes part
of the problem.
HB 2535 gets at the vicious circle of addiction. Every dollar spent
on prevention – keeping people, especially young people, from
starting down the road to addiction – can save many dollars spent
on treatment. Every dollar spent on treatment – getting addicted
Oregonians off booze or drugs – can save many dollars spent on
law enforcement, not to mention preventing broken homes and child
abuse. Every dollar spent on law enforcement can save many dollars
lost to crime and accidents – and save lives.
A little over a dime a drink – 60 cents a six-pack -- is not
going to bust the budget of any beer drinker, nor is it going to put
any brewery out of business. And remember, through the small-brewery
exemption in HB 2535, no Oregon brewery will have to pay this fee,
so the state’s sacrosanct craft brewing industry is protected. |
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Thank you for the opportunity
to present today. On behalf of our colleagues within the Oregon Prevention,
Education, & Recovery Association, as well as Hazelden’s
other treatment centers throughout the country, I hope to share with
you the “unexpected face” of addiction. Our program in Newberg
offers a specialty treatment for health care professionals –
physicians, pharmacists, dentists, nurses, and others - who fall victim
to the illness of addiction. The benefit to Oregon’s communities
is clear: as these individuals complete our treatment program, we
assist them with the long process of returning to work as productive,
contributing citizens. The success rate for these professionals to
maintain their recovery is surprisingly high, as are the recovery
rates of many Oregonians who receive treatment at the other valuable
programs represented here today.
In 2006, Hazelden extended about $4 million in financial aid nationally
to patients who could not afford the full cost of our residential
or outpatient programs. Ironically, most of that aid went to employed,
middle-class people – working families – whose private insurance
would not pay for the care they needed to begin their journey of recovery.
We meet these people everyday. In the past month alone, Hazelden has
received thousands of letters, emails and phone calls from individuals
who are in need of our services. Most of these people are really no
different than you or I. The difference is that these addicts have
a chronic, progressive illness that, if left untreated, can be fatal.
Fortunately, as research has found, recovery IS possible, with a combination
of medical, psychological, and spiritual approaches.
Of course, there some among them who are in denial about what is required
to help them. Addiction, like depression or eating disorders, thrives
in the shadows of private shame and personal misunderstanding. Denial
does drive people away from seeking treatment, much like with other
chronic illnesses. But most of the people we speak with desperately
want help for themselves or their loved ones.
As is witnessed by your attention to this issue here today, addiction
is a bi-partisan illness that does not discriminate. With the partnership
approach that OPERA supports amongst those of us providing addiction
services in Oregon, I believe that we will continue to make progress
each year. Progress in the area of prevention. Progress in the area
of early intervention. Progress in rebuilding the lives of many Oregonians
and their families.
Thank you for this valuable opportunity to share this message with
you.
Jan Vondrachek, Executive Director
Hazelden - Springbrook |
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OPERA
is
a statewide, nonprofit association of private sector and tribal
entities who provide treatment, prevention and training services.
We are dedicated to ending addiction by ensuring the development
and maintenance of the highest quality statewide service systems. |
Mission
OPERA’s mission is to eliminate alcohol and drug problems
and their social, health and behavioral consequences through
use of evidence-based practices; partnerships with public and
private, social and healthcare providers; and advocacy for effective
budget and public policy. |
Vision
We envision a society in which alcohol and drug problems are
recognized as a public health issue that is both preventable
and treatable. We envision a society in which high quality services
for prevention and treatment of alcohol and drug problems are
widely available, and where prevention and treatment are recognized
as specialized fields of expertise. |
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