CASA Spending Report Shows Maine Has Highest Burden of Substance Abuse and Addiction on a State Budget

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) released a 287-page report yesterday that outlined just how much addiction and substance abuse costs local, state and national government. Looking at government spending data from 2005 (the latest available), they found 96% ($357.4 billion) went to “shovel up the consequences and human…

Become an advocate for alcohol and drug addiction prevention, treatment and recovery services in Maine

Maine Association of Substance Abuse Programs (MASAP), Maine Alliance to Prevent Substance Abuse (MAPSA), Maine Alliance for Addiction Recovery (MAAR) and AdCare Educational Institute of Maine are co-sponsoring some free trainings for people that are concerned about alcohol and drug related problems in Maine and would like to make a difference by advocating for prevention,…

NIDA Introduces New Drug Screening Tool and Resources for Docs

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) just launched an outreach program that includes an online screening tool and other resources for physicians. Called NIDAMED, the program aims to educate doctors around screening patients for drug use in order to identify problems before they turn into full-blown addiction. Doctors often cite lack of time with…

The legal ramifications of enabling a loved one’s drug or alcohol addiction

Last week, Anna Nicole Smith’s partner / lawyer, Howard K. Stern, and two doctors were charged with multiple felonies for illegally supplying the drugs that ultimately led to her accidental fatal overdose in February of 2007. Several prescription drugs were found in the room in which she died. It was reported that all three men…

Sheehan to present at Winter Break for Working Women event in Orono, Maine

Women lawyers from the Maine Bar Association and women physicians from the Maine Medical Association have joined forces to fight back the blues of winter with a unique day and a half retreat of fun and CLE credits. This winter break will be a relaxing mixture of education and fun with friends and colleagues at…

Women on Welfare More Likely to Find Jobs, Sobriety with Treatment Approach

A recent report from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University shows that a new intensive case management approach to help drug-addicted women on poverty provides better outcomes for sobriety and employment than the current employment-first approach. The new approach views addiction as a chronic disease vs. a temporary problem.…