Heroin epidemic worsening in Louisville

Drug use is a recreational disease like smoking. People know its addictive, unhealthy, expensive and could end up killing them before they take it the first time. A drug like heroin may be hard to kick but it is by no means impossible to stop an addiction if they're housed somewhere that they can't leave. Otherwise, they usually take about 5 to 10 trips through a very expensive rehab process before they decide they want to be cured. Don't expect taxpayers to foot the bill for that when there are children dying of diseases that weren't their choice. There are just too many addicts who go to prison for a long stretch, get out, and go right back to taking drugs to say this is purely about a lack of treatment. Scientists are working on drugs than can block the affects of heroin right now, and when they're available then we should make drug addicts take those drugs while they're sitting in jail.

The countries with the lowest drug use are those where the people belong to a religion that makes it forbidden and that belief actually carries over to their cultural beliefs. Having a culture (not just laws) that's permissive towards drug use drives usage up.