Health

handmade34

(22,756 posts) Tue Oct 1, 2013, 11:32 PM Oct 2013

now official... what we've known for years...

http://www.icsdp.org

New research shows war on drugs has failed to reduce supply and access to illegal drugs internationally
BMJ Open study shows illegal drugs cheaper, more potent despite law enforcement efforts

September 30, 2013 – A new study published in the British Medical Journal Open finds that the prices of illegal drugs have generally declined while their purity has increased over the past twenty years, raising questions about the effectiveness of international law enforcement efforts to reduce drug supply. Researchers from the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy reviewed two decades of global drug surveillance data, finding that the supply of major illegal drugs has increased, as measured through a decline in the price, while there has been a corresponding general increase in the purity of illegal drugs.

“These findings add to the growing body of evidence that the war on drugs has failed,” said study co-author Dr. Evan Wood, Scientific Chair of the International Centre for Science in Drug Policy and Canada Research Chair in Inner City Medicine at the University of British Columbia. “We should look to implement policies that place community health and safety at the forefront of our efforts, and consider drug use a public health issue rather than a criminal justice issue. With the recognition that efforts to reduce drug supply are unlikely to be successful, there is a clear need to scale up addiction treatment and other strategies that can effectively reduce drug-related harm.” ........