Society

Son La: 6,000 drug addicts to access methadone treatment

The Government will subsidise a health programme using methadone therapy to treat approximately 6,000 drug addicts across northern Son La province through 2020.
The Government will subsidise a health programme using methadonetherapy to treat approximately 6,000 drug addicts across northern Son Laprovince through 2020.

The province seeks togradually curb reliance on current drugs with methadone. Within 2015, 18new medical facilities will be established for methadone treatment anddistribution, while free drugs will be delivered to healthcare units inYen Chau, Quynh Nhai, Bac Yen, Phu Yen, and Sop Cop districts.

According to Dam Van Huong, Head of the Son La Centre for HIV/AIDSPrevention, local addicts will be able to receive free treatment underthe sponsorship of a global fund for preventing and curbing theaddiction.

If they correctly follow the treatment process, it will accelerate the patients’ rehabilitation, he said.

Statistically, only 665 out of 7,763 drug abusers in Son La have accessed the therapy thus far.-VNA
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