Now Middletown city councilman Dan Picard has made a startling proposal. He's suggested a three strikes rule: overdose two times and the third time medics may not respond. If overdoses continue at this rate, Picard says they won't be able to afford to provide emergency services. "If we don't do anything the city's going to run out of money," he says.
Each dose of Naloxone, an overdose reversal drug, cost about $36 and, depending on the potency of the opioid, one patient may require several doses. The department estimates it will spend up to $90,000 on Naloxone this year —that's 50 percent more than their entire budget for all the medications aboard their ambulances.
Picard says that's not the only cost. He calculates that each overdose run cost the city $1,104. He counts the wear on the ambulance, the cost of drugs and the medics' time.
His proposed three strikes policy would work like this: The first two times a person overdoses they would have to pay back every cent by performing community service. If that same person overdoses a third time, but they have not completed their community service, an ambulance will not go out to help them. Picard says his plan has been called inhumane, but, he worries about what could happen when the city can't afford any emergency services at all.
Picard doesn't even know if this idea is legal, but the city needs a solution. From addiction treatment to a needle exchange, this year the opioid epidemic could cost Middletown over $2 million dollars — 10 percent of the city's annual tax revenue.
His plan has its critics. For one thing, even if were feasible, it might not make a big financial difference. According to the Fire Department, only 15 percent of overdose runs are for people who have had multiple overdoses. Chief Paul Lolli says that means the bulk of the overdose runs, 85 percent, are for first time overdoses.
I'm sure hospital addmission costs are massive as well... it'd never pass though, I imagine
Ethan Brown
>For one thing, even if were feasible, it might not make a big financial difference
This is why people go broke. They think if you are trying to save $100 and doing X only saves $10 then there is no point in doing it at all
Dominic Edwards
>Legalize marijuana >People no longer arrested for possession etc. >Massive financial burden taken from jails >Put some of the saved money into emergency services Fixed the city budget
Levi Peterson
Simpler solution: >remove beans, nigs, kebabs >supply drop makes prices too high for junkies
Connor Reed
Nope.
I believe in 2nd chances but if you OD and don't get help for yourself afterwards it's all on you. I know addiction is a disease and it significantly alters the brain but to say that you aren't coherent in thought while sober is BS. You put the pills into your mouth. You put the heroin into your veins, why should society pay for your intentional degeneracy?
Mason Kelly
Yes, goy. To stop a drig epidimic just legalize gateway drugs.
Joseph Miller
the current way doesn't make sense. If addiction really was making it impossible for them to make decisions then they can't be let loose on the streets. Sorry.
Joseph Jackson
This, if you survive once and keep on going then you are hopeless.
Asher Barnes
>((((((Honig))))))
Christopher Bell
NATURAL SELECTION. KILL all retards, people with brain fuck ups, drug addicts, people who can't figure out how to use a fucking lighter. GEEEAWD! People spend millions of dollars on saving the lives of retards, and why. I don't buy that shit like "oh hes my son though!" so the fuck what, he ain't normal, kill him, put him out his misery. He is only a waste of time and money, then people say "But he is worth the time, he is human too" no he isn't, if he was then he would swallow a bullet cause he would realize what a fucking waste and burden he was.
Kevin Butler
This is a reality check. It is not sustainable or feasible to just constantly use city resources to keep the lowest level of drug addicts alive. This is one of those points where people need to accept the harsh realities of life (i.e. some people care more about poor people than poor people care about themselves) and stop making such non-strategic use of scarce resources.
Save the lives of people who actually want to live and are at no fault of their own, like mothers who get mugged or young people who get hurt.
Easton Hill
They should help anybody regardless, it's a slippery slope if they start deciding who deserves help and who doesn't
Evan Green
not really. your idealism has no place in a world where the available resources are already strained
John Wright
Fine, then after the second overdose they should stick them in an institution and force them to get clean.
Zachary Adams
If someones house sets on fire a third time, do we put it out? If someone is mugged 3 times, do we stop the mugger each time?
I'm torn, on one hand, these people do it to themselves, so go die. On the other, we pay into the state, it should be there if we are paying in. Also, saving them seems pointless by the state, when the state doesn't offer long term addiction solution programs, so why save them just so they can get high again?
Lucas Rodriguez
As an EMT this shit is frustrating to no end. I try my best to have some sympathy for these people but after 3 years its hard. Some people are just hopeless.
Aiden Martinez
What if they decide they won't help somebody with different political views to them, or a white male because of his privilege? It leads to potential abuse
I support this
Julian Phillips
Just give the damn junkies what they really want so they don't have to buy smack loaded up with fent from some nigger which is really whats causing all these problems.
Oxy, Hydro, what ever they started on. Just give it back to them. Fuck it. Just give them something that isn't loaded up with fent or stepped on 5 different times.
If they just really like the street shit so bad then let them kill themselves.
Samuel Butler
they should refuse service to illegals desu
Mason Smith
It should be legal to kill drug abusers.
Camden Hall
That's when you help yourself, and people who can't help themselves go the way of antiquity.
Jaxson Wood
>this year the opioid epidemic could cost Middletown over $2 million dollars — 10 percent of the city's annual tax revenue.
Remember when americans pat their own backs for "not having socialized medicine"?
They're actually so fucking stupid they don't realize their insurance fees and taxes already pay for all this, just in an extremely inefficient way because they have way more bloodsuckers involved, and they all want a cut.
Also nobody gets any treatment before everything's an emergency. Plus you have zero enforcement for illegals, at least here you need a state issued ID. And you give citizenship to someone for being shat out on your soil.
Can you really find a more delusional group of cucks than the >65%?
Adam Allen
>Just give the damn junkies what they really want
oh yeah and also feed the junkies and provide a shelter for them and clean their piss
if the junkies want to consume their stuff they can do it in the "lawless desert", using money they made themselves
when you receive stuff on handouts it should be inferior product such as methadone because the goal is for them to be able to provide for themselves
Landon Phillips
Ambulance service is a business not a charity so as long as you paid the bill from yourblast over dose youre free to continue.
Have you ever seen an ambulance bill? Theyre like $2000. For a 15 minute ride to the hospital
YES. GATEWAY DRUGS. EVIL GATEWAY DRUGS. GATEWAY DRUGS. LIKE THE GATES OF AAUUUUUUUSSSSCHWIIIIIITZ.
MARIJUANA IS JUST LIKE AUSCHWITZ. EVERY TIME YOU SMOKE MARIJUANA IT'S LIKE YOU PERSONALLY KILLED 6,000,000 JEWS.
Jackson Martin
it doesn't embed tho
Landon Moore
>Forcing druggies to do community service
You know that might not actually be a bad idea. A lot of druggies are suffering depression. Sure 90% won't even show up, but getting them working among people could do wonders.
Charles Cooper
>legalize gateway drugs.
alcohol is already legal though
Jaxson Bell
>using money they made themselves I agree with this. I'm sure the OD cases will involve a percentage of people who just leech the system, but IIRC most of these OD cases involve working class people who started buying doctored up heroin because the doctor cut them off of their prescription meds for what ever reason.
Most people should be able to transition off prescription opiates post surgery well, but its the patients that were put on long term pain management by a doctor who have the dependency. When the doctor cuts them off for what ever reason they will looks else where.
Under a doctor's care and with insurance a 30 day supply of say oxycodone costs about $20. One pill on the street is damn near as much. When they find out they can get enough heroin to last them 3 days for $20 that's what they turn to.
There's really no universal solution. Are some of these people really in serious pain? Are some of these people just trying to get high? Were they in serious need under a doctor's care and then the doctor got nailed for running a pill mill? Then they couldn't find another doctor willing to help them? Seems to me its safer to just keep renewing their prescription is that's what they really want and especially if they can pay for it. Why cut people off and leave them very little choice? Get clean which isn't very easy for some, or score smack which will eventually kill them.
Landon Harris
No goy! We can't legalize marijuana! I need the shekels from my private prisons! We need more drugs to be illegal since profits are down.
Robert Sullivan
how about a no strikes policy because drug addicts deserve everything that happens to them. need a Dutarte policy if anything. does anyone know a drug addict that holds a job and contributes to society in any meaningful way? because I sure don't. throwing drug addicts out into the public to perform community service is a waste of everybody's time because they will do a piss poor job of it
Thomas Wilson
Not only that. Imagine suffering from withdrawals as you're doing community service.
Anthony Brooks
That doesn't solve the money problem. It's expensive to institutionalize people.
