Dear
Friends,
This is
the twelfth year of the "National Alcohol and Drug Addiction
Recovery Month" (Recovery Month) celebration. Recovery
Month highlights the societal benefits of substance abuse
treatment, lauds the contributions of treatment providers and
promotes the message that recovery from substance use in all its
forms is possible. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Treatment
(CSAT) sponsors the celebration to encourage citizen action to
help expand and improve the availability of effective addiction
treatment for those in need. Substance use continues to be a
national public health problem affecting millions of people, and
it is critical to educate the public on the crucial role substance
abuse treatment plays in reclaiming lives ravaged by alcoholism
and drug addiction.
This
year's theme, "We Recover Together: Family, Friends, and
Community" is intended to focus the Nation's attention,
for the month of September, on the needs of Americans who severely
need substance abuse treatment. According to the National
Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 57 percent of people with a severe
drug problem – about 2.9 million people in need of treatment –
did not receive it.
The
enclosed materials are designed to provide information and
resources to be utilized to spread the word that those suffering
from addiction can be helped and freed through treatment. In
addition, the kit is geared to show others in your State and
community that greater local resources, health insurance coverage
and employer support will result in less crime, more productive
schools and workplaces, earlier intervention, and savings to the
health care system. Specifically, these materials target parents
and families, schools and the education community, health
policymakers and insurers, criminal justice systems, health
professionals, community organizations, the faith community and
employers. In addition, the kit includes information and resources
needed to launch a comprehensive public education initiative to
support local print and broadcast media efforts. It is our hope
that as SAMHSA and CSAT work on Recovery Month on a
national scale you will work at the local level to share this
information with others in your State and community who can make a
difference for those in need of treatment, and support those in
recovery.
We thank
you for your efforts to educate others on the benefits of
addiction treatment. We can make a difference and help reduce this
national epidemic that touches every American. Together, we can
help families, friends and communities reclaim their lives from
substance use.
Sincerely
yours,
Joseph H.
Autry III, M.D
Acting Administrator
H. Westley
Clark, M.D., J.D., M.P.H., CAS, FASAM
Director
Center for Substance Abuse Treatment
Office
of the Administrator—Office of Applied Studies—Office of
Communications—Office of Equal Employment Opportunity &
Civil Rights—Office of Managed Care—Office of Minority Health—Office
of Policy & Program Coordination—Office of Program Services
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