The Cabinet yesterday approved a new method in which hospitals and rehabilitation centers will help drug addicts overcome dependency by providing them with drugs in gradually decreasing quantities, rather than forcing addicts to quit "cold turkey."
Helping more people to overcome drug dependency can also counter the spread of HIV, Cabinet spokesman Chou Jung-tai (
He said that drug addicts who share needles are at high risk of contracting HIV.
"This is a fresh idea -- to continue providing drugs, but decreasing the dosage while helping them quit. The premier agreed to implement the new idea, but said that more detailed discussions are necessary" before the program can be implemented, Chou said.
According to the latest Department of Health (DOH) statistics, 4,000 of the nation's 20,000 registered HIV patients are drug addicts.
"There is definitely a connection between taking drugs and HIV infections. We shall do something to fix the problem," Chou said.
The DOH proposed the "harm-reduction" approach at the Cabinet meeting yesterday morning.
Medical personnel at hospitals and rehabilitation centers will provide clean needles, regulate the decreasing drug dosages and offer professional counseling services to help addicts kick the habit.
However, Minister of Justice Morley Shih (
Shih said that there was no law to back up the "harm-reduction" approach to drug addiction, and that the new medical treatment may spark complaints from the public.
"The premier shares the justice minister's concern, and that is why he asked Cabinet members to discuss whether it will be necessary to amend the law," Chou said.
"We cannot give the public the impression that `the government will provide free drugs to addicts.' It is wrong," Chou quoted Premier Frank Hsieh (
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