AUGUSTA, Maine — Members of the Maine Opiate Collaborative, which formed after Gov. Paul LePage's drug summit in August, are expressing initial support for a legislative plan released last week to address drug addiction.
Their support comes as House Speaker Mark Eves and LePage argue over how much the state should focus on treatment versus law enforcement.
The plan released last week by legislative leaders called for 10 more drug enforcement agents in Maine and a new 10-bed detox unit in Bangor. The estimated cost is $5 million, about evenly split between the two.
When asked whether the Maine Opiate Collaborative supports the plan, Gordon Smith of the Maine Medical Association gave tentative approval.
"I can tell you that most of the task force's work has indicated that the package is a good start," he says.
The Maine Opiate Collaborative is made up of three task forces: law enforcement, treatment, and prevention and harm reduction.
U.S. Attorney for Maine Thomas Delahanty says all three prongs are important. Law enforcement is needed to reduce the supply of drugs flowing into the state, he says.
"On the other hand, we do have to reduce the demand," he says. "And if you can reduce the demand, then Maine is not the attractive market that they're looking for for their product. So if we go at it from both ends, the aim is to get to the problem in the middle."
But LePage describes the plan released by legislative leaders as being little more than a few bullet points.
Eves sent a letter to LePage last week after the plan was released, asking for details on how the administration would support treatment and education efforts. On Thursday, LePage sent a letter back criticizing Eves for having what the governor says were lopsided priorities.
LePage says the Legislature should have funded more drug enforcement agents when he first requested them a year and a half ago.
As the Legislature prepares to debate various proposals that address drug addiction in the next session, members of the Maine Opiate Collaborative say they hope their work will help inform lawmakers on effective policies.
