News

     Thanks to Pendleton Community Bank (PCB), the Pocahontas County Prevention Coalition will be able to fiscally manage the SPF-SIG Grant. One of the requirements of the grant is that the funds are reimbursed, which means that thousands of dollars must be allocated in order to pay up-front costs associated with the grant and community activities. PCB has provided the coalition with a line-of-credit that enables us to proceed with activities while awaiting the 60-90 day reimbursement from the West Virginia Department of Justice. Without their support, our task might have been impossible!

Thousands of Residents Admit to Addictions

     By The Associated Press
Tuesday September 04, 2007
About 120,000 West Virginia residents have admitted using illicit drugs, jeopardizing themselves, co-workers and employers, according to federal workplace studies.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration analyzed 2004 and 2005 data on the amount of drug use and alcohol abuse in each state and in the nation's workplaces.
It estimated 105,000 adults ages 18 to 64 and 15,000 youths ages 12 to 17 in West Virginia used illicit drugs in the previous month.
"It's not a class issue or a discrimination issue. Drugs affect every walk of life,' said Tim Morris, spokesman for Prestera Center, which offers treatment and programs for behavioral health care and substance abuse.
"It is getting hard for substance abuse recovery providers to keep up with demand,' Morris said.
Nationwide, 8.2 percent of all full-time workers used some type of illicit drug and 8.8 percent used alcohol heavily, the federal agency said.
Although statistics by employment sector weren't available by state, the accommodations and food service industry nationwide had the most illicit drug use among employees at 16.9 percent, followed by 13.7 percent of construction industry workers and 11.6 percent in the arts, entertainment and recreation industry.
Heavy drinking was admitted by nearly 16 percent of construction workers, 13.6 percent of arts, entertainment and recreation employees and 13.7 percent of mining employees.
Many companies, including in the construction and coal industries, have pre-employment drug screenings in place. Companies also are making confidential employee assistance programs available.
"Our members work on projects where safety is No. 1, and prevention falls under that,' said Michael Clowser, executive director of the Contractors Association of West Virginia.
In June, Gov. Joe Manchin signed an executive order expanding the ranks of state employees who must submit to drug tests before they are hired. The order involves all executive branch agencies that report to his office, including independent contractors and volunteers in activities related to state agency business.
© Copyright Charleston Daily Mail

The cost of substance abuse: Is West Virginia spending its money wisely?
Wayne F. Coombs July 29, 2007

     An old folktale goes something like this:
One summer, the townspeople gathered for a picnic by the river. As they leisurely shared food and conversation, a baby was seen in the river, struggling and crying and about to drown. Someone rushed to save the baby. Then more screaming babies appeared, and the townspeople rushed to save them too. With great effort they began to organize their activities in order to save the babies as they came down the river. Then one man ran away along the shore. Where are you going? shouted one of the rescuers. We need you here to help save these babies! The townsman replied, Im going upstream to stop whoever is throwing them in!
Last year, a national panel of substance abuse policy experts released a report recommending policies to improve the ways states organize and deliver substance abuse prevention and treatment. Their message was clear: Pay attention to alcohol and drugs because they are the root of the most expensive and serious problems in all your human services and criminal justice agencies.
The combined cost of substance abuse-related issues in West Virginia is $1.86 BILLION dollars per year, according to a recent report by the Public Consulting Group for the state Bureau for Behavioral Health and Health Facilities. This is about $1,000 a year for every man, woman and child, or about $320 a month for a family of four. This is a staggering amount to pay for a problem that is largely preventable.
In 2001, the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University reported that for every dollar states spent on substance abuse, 96 cents went to shovel up the wreckage in state programs and only four cents went to prevent and treat the problem. Its hard to imagine that this pennywise, pound-foolish approach is the way West Virginians would prefer to spend their money.
Abuse and addiction involving illegal and prescription drugs, alcohol, and tobacco are involved in virtually every domestic problem our state and nation face: crime, cancer, heart disease, lung disease, AIDS, cirrhosis, child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, teen pregnancy, chronic welfare dependency, learning disabilities, conduct disorders, poor school performance. Nearly every sector of our society spends hefty sums trying to clean up after substance abuse.
The negative consequences of substance abuse are among the largest costs in the states budget, although their impact and exact cost are hidden within the expenses for criminal justice, education, health care, child welfare, mental health and highway safety.
Perhaps the cruelest reality is the state substance abuse spending on children. If a child reaches age 21 without using tobacco, alcohol, or illegal drugs, research tells us that chances are he or she never will. Yet we spend approximately 113 times more to clean up the mess of substance abuse than we spend on encouraging children to stay away from these substances in the first place.
In West Virginia, there is a glimmer of hope. The Governors Office and the Legislature are beginning to take notice. In March 2006, the Legislature passed House Bill 4488 and established the West Virginia Comprehensive Behavioral Commission to study the current behavioral health system, including substance abuse and domestic violence when those conditions have an effect upon or are impacted by the system.
In May 2004, the previous governor established Executive Order No. 8-04 and created the West Virginia Partnership to Promote Community Well-Being. The order established the Partnership as the states designated substance abuse prevention and intervention planning body. The Partnership is a group of about 30 people appointed by the governor, who represent the agencies in state government that deliver services.
The Partnership began as a requirement of a five-year, $11.7 million federal grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Over the past two years, the Partnership gathered data and identified the counties with the highest levels of overall substance abuse problems. Knowing that state-level attention to prevention is essential but solutions to the substance abuse epidemic originate and culminate through local participation, the Partnership funded year-long planning grants for counties. This funding went to the participating counties to further assess their substance abuse problems and develop a comprehensive plan to implement evidence-based prevention strategies. In all, 53 counties participated. Local prevention partnerships now exist in nearly every county in the state. These partnerships are actively recruiting members and encouraging citizen participation.
In the coming year, the Partnership will invest 85 percent of its yearly budget, about $1.6 million, to fund prevention efforts in the dozen or so counties with the greatest need. Compared to what the state spends to clean up the mess of substance abuse, this is a pittance. But it is a start, and the overall effort is beginning to show promise.
With increased resources from the state and federal government, and leadership from the Governors Office and Legislature, this effort could significantly reduce the financial burden of substance abuse on the state and improve the lives of West Virginians.
We know what does and doesnt work in reducing substance abuse in West Virginia. So the question for all state residents is simple: Do we want to continue to pay the enormous costs of the consequences of substance abuse and addiction, or do we want to invest our resources in treating and preventing it from occurring in the first place? Do we really want to continue to put all our time and money into pulling babies out of the water without stopping them from being thrown into the river in the first place?
Coombs is director of the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center.