Celebrating National Substance Abuse Prevention Month!

 

NATIONAL SUBSTANCE AB– USE PREVENTION MONTH

 

This month, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) is standing with President Obama and our public health partners to celebrate National Substance Abuse Prevention Month(PDF 349KB) in the month of October.

As those in the public health community know, the best way to address some of the nation’s biggest health issues is through prevention. Like other chronic diseases, drug addiction can be treated, but the most cost-effective and common-sense approach is to prevent substance abuse before it even begins.Millions of Americans struggle with substance abuse, and the resulting negative consequences of their addiction also impact their families, friends, neighbors, and communities. In fact, substance abuse touches every sector of our society, straining our health care and criminal justice systems – costing the U.S. as much as $193 billion annually. Prevention is the key to reducing this financial burden and building healthy and safe communities across the country.

Drug users, particularly those who inject, are among the groups with the highest risk of HIV infection. Use of non-injection drugs is also associated with an increased risk for HIV infection, as studies show that drug use may reduce inhibitions and lead users to engage in increased or risky sexual activity. That’s why ONDCP’s National Drug Control Strategy, which provides a blueprint for how the government will work together to reduce drug use and its consequences, is complementary to the White House National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), which is designed to reduce HIV incidence, increase access to care, and reduce health disparities.

By R. Gil Kerlikowske, Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy

R. Gil Kerlikowske

SEI Joins President Obama in Observing October

National Substance Abuse Prevention Month

10-07-11

SILVER SPRING, MD—In a declaration that celebrates and renews the Nation’s commitment to substance abuse prevention, President Barack Obama proclaimed October as National Substance Abuse Prevention Month. Substance abuse has a devastating effect on individuals and far-reaching impacts on families, neighborhoods, and every sector of American society, including the health care and criminal justice systems.

“The damage done by drugs is felt far beyond the millions of Americans with diagnosable substance use disorders—countless families and communities also live with the pain and heartbreak it causes,” President Obama said in a proclamation released on October 3, 2011.

“Relationships are destroyed,

crime and violence blight communities, and dreams are shattered.”

Synergy Enterprises, Inc., acts on a deeply-felt commitment to preventing substance abuse and improving the lives of those it affects. We work with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the National Institute on Drug Abuse on a wide variety of projects included in more than five contracts.

Click here to view a Fact Sheet detailing our substance abuse prevention capabilities and experience. We will continue to dedicate our resources, skills, and expertise to the fight against substance abuse throughout National Substance Abuse Prevention Month and for months and years to come.