ACCESSING DRUG-ABUSE TREATMENT - PERCEPTIONS OF OUT-OF-TREATMENT INJECTORS

The Presidential Commission on the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Epidem ic (1988) developed a 10-year plan in 1987 that recommended ''Expanded drug abuse treatment programs sufficient to admit all IV drug users w ho desired services and, until that occurred, short-term detoxificatio n and low-dose methadone for those on waiting lists.'' This study, pre sents data collected from a sample of 2,613 out-of-treatment and nonin carcerated injection drug users in 21 U.S. cities to examine their dru g-treatment access during the past year. Analyses on injectors who tri ed but were unable to enter treatment revealed that program-based reas ons (e.g., no room, too costly,or stringent admission criteria) are th e most commonly given barriers to drug treatment (72%). However, a not able number of injectors (20%) also reported that individual-based rea sons are important for not accessing drug treatment. Injectors giving program- and individual-based reasons for not entering treatment are p rofiled using logistic regression.