Addiction Treatment Needed Less In England As Drug Addiction Cases Fall

The number of patients requiring addiction treatment for heroin and crack cocaine treatments has fallen by 10,000 people annually over the last two years in England.

According to the National Treatment Agency for Substance Abuse adults being treated for class A drug fell from 62,963 cases in 2008 ad 2009 to just 52,933 cases during the same 2010 through 2011 period.

The study also found that the largest decline came from the under-30 age group.

Another positive trend shows that a record number of citizens are “recovering” from addiction and no longer require regular treatment. According to the study 27,969 users are recovering from 2010/11 an 18% improvement from the previous year and 150% higher than in 2005/2006 when 11,208 people were recovering after treatment.

While the study shows a positive trend researchers warns that addiction remains a “serious problem” in certain communities, specifically in poor areas.

Speaking about the recently released numbers Turning Point’s director of substance misuse, John Mallalieu told the BBC that the numbers were “promising” while adding:

“This is made easier for them because as a nation, we are becoming more ambitious for drug users and giving them more opportunities to become part of society again.

“It is important that we ensure the right methodologies are kept in place to tackle the wide range of problems that contribute to a person’s substance misuse such as mental health, unemployment, housing and physical health.

With more treatment centers and advances in understanding addiction it shouldn’t come as a surprise that cases are falling in the region. It would be interesting to see how the rest of the world compares in terms of treatment numbers.