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<br />" <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />12~ <br /> <br />Until recently the main trust of the Federal Government I s ac~ivity <br /> <br />3.11 thefleld of ch'ugs has been in treatment and pT8ir.ention. FOT eX2..'TIple <br /> <br />in October 1971 there \'Iere only 10.219 patients in Federally funded de- <br /> <br />toxification, drug free outpati8nt and t.herapeutic progrcuns. By February <br /> <br /> <br />of 1973 this number had risen to 45.693. The prevention efforts were <br /> <br /> <br />concentrated in the enforcement of orten tlnnecessa.ry harsh laws ~ The <br /> <br />new narcotic schedUles are more equitable. The change of the various state <br /> <br />laws to become more in compliance with the Federal Narcotic Schedules has <br /> <br />helped to, erase some of the injustice that existed within the system, <br /> <br />For the first time <br /> <br />a new awareness, away from rigid law enforce- <br /> <br />ment, has become the trend in the Special Drug Office, Dr. Jerome Jaffe, <br /> <br />Director of the Special Office, in a ,message prepared for the President <br /> <br />stated: "During the past two years, one of the highest priorities of <br /> <br />the Federal Government has been to reduce the social cost of drug abuse, <br /> <br />We are aware that drug abuse is not a single problem: different people <br /> <br />using different drugs with different social and medical consequences. <br /> <br />The problems range from excessive use of alcohol and dependence on tran- <br /> <br />quilizers to experimentation \;ith LSD and addiction to heroin" . In the <br /> <br />early days of drug abuse, legislation dealt with the heroin addict re- <br /> <br />turning from Vietnam. A second priority was to make treatment available <br /> <br /> <br />for narcotics users in the United States in order to reduce the death, <br /> <br /> <br />disease and crime, The Federal Government, however keeps making the <br />