It is pathetic that the leader of this state is still confused about science. Anyone can Google effective treatments for opiate addiction and learn that medication, such as methadone or buprenorphine (Suboxone), paired with comprehensive counseling and behavioral therapy is currently the most proven treatment for adults with an opioid use disorder.
Yet Gov. Paul LePage, during his weekly radio appearance on WVOM, had the impudence to say, “When it comes to methadone, every expert I’ve talked to says there’s no clinical aspect to it. … It’s no help.” That’s why “I’ve been trying to close down methadone clinics since I’ve been governor.”
This is dangerous rhetoric at any time, let alone during the middle of an opioid epidemic that is killing far more Maine people each year than car crashes. Methadone is actually one of the most researched forms of treatment. We don’t know which “experts” LePage is talking to, but what follows are the facts, based on research, from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. You can see them all at http://bit.ly/mmtsummary.
1. Methadone treatment, for people with heroin and prescription narcotic addiction, has been shown to reduce the use of illicit drugs, reduce criminal activity, reduce needle sharing, reduce HIV infection rates and transmission, save money, reduce commercial sex work, reduce the number of reports of multiple sex partners, improve social health and productivity, improve health conditions, improve retention in addiction treatment and reduce rates of suicide and overdoses.
2. Patients who stay in treatment longer, receive more therapy and have higher doses of methadone tend to show better results.
3. Methadone maintenance treatment improves the likelihood patients will obtain and retain employment.
4. Methadone can be safely used to treat pregnant women. Babies born to women in treatment fare better than those who endure cycles of illicit drug use and withdrawal or who quit narcotics cold turkey.
5. It is medically safe to take methadone maintenance treatment long term. “The most common and enduring complaints after six months to three years of continuous methadone treatment are sweating, constipation, abnormalities in libido and sexual functioning, sleep abnormalities (insomnia and nightmares) and altered appetite (mild anorexia, weight gain),” NIDA states.
6. The best methadone maintenance treatment programs rely on evidence-based dosing policies and dose ranges, offer a variety of psychosocial services, pay attention to staff training and retention, and, when possible, integrate other medical and counseling services.
7. It is far cheaper to have someone in methadone maintenance treatment than untreated and on the street or in prison.
If LePage is actually concerned about methadone clinics not providing quality care — such as enough counseling — he has the power to change that. Currently the clinics receive some of the lowest reimbursement rates from Medicaid in the nation because of his policies. It is entirely unreasonable to cut their funding, place restrictions on the amount of time people can receive care and then expect them to thrive — all while complying with more stringent regulations that could force some out of business.
LePage is making up his own facts and using them to undermine the very mode of treatment that could be saving lives. If he were a doctor, his actions would be akin to malpractice.
