CONTEMPLATING SUBOPTIMAL TREATMENT OPTIONS:

Preserving "the good" when the alternative is "the worst. "Treatment centers brace for impact of financial crisis" - that's the sobering but hardly surprising headline of a publication aimed at those working in the field (Addiction Professional, 1 Oct 08). Anyone who believes addiction treatment providers will be spared during these times of fiscal crisis and severe cutbacks is probably smoking some heavy stuff - or perhaps should be. The question: are providers considering seriously ways to markedly curtail the "comprehensive" nature (and costs) of their services in order to be able to continue providing at least some assistance to those who desperately need it? In other words, to paraphrase Voltaire, are they figuring out how they might be able to continue offering "the good" rather than to resort to "the worst" - abandonment?