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Editorial: Rauner errs on heroin treatment funding

There's no denying that Illinois' budget crisis means that sacrifices have to be made when it comes to spending. But Gov. Bruce Rauner's amendatory veto of a multifaceted approach to combating heroin abuse is the wrong sacrifice.

As reported Tuesday by Daily Herald reporter Kerry Lester, a recent Roosevelt University study showed Illinois had the biggest drop over five years in available treatment slots for drug addiction at the same time heroin abuse continues to increase. With that as a backdrop, Rauner decided to change the law passed by the General Assembly because "it includes provisions that will impose a very costly mandate on the state's Medicaid providers."

The effect, advocates of the bill say, is that people who don't have private insurance could be prevented from getting the help they need.

That's wrong. And we back efforts by proposal's lead sponsor, state Rep. Lou Lang, a Skokie Democrat, to override the veto.

"Vetoing that part of it (the bill) is crushing," said Chelsea Laliberte, founder of an Arlington Heights-based nonprofit heroin education and awareness group. "One of the biggest reasons that so many people are dying is that they can't get care, long-term care," she told Daily Herald reporters Jessica Cilella and Marie Wilson. " ... The biggest issue is people can't afford treatment."

The Roosevelt University study showed state funding for addiction treatment in Illinois already had dropped significantly - from $111 million in 2007 to $79 million in 2012. Heroin users made up 35.1 percent of state-funded treatment admissions in the Chicago area in 2012, compared to a national average of 16.4 percent.

The problem is real and many in the suburbs are suffering. That's why this newspaper has been chronicling the devastating impact of the increased heroin use over the last decade or so and seeking solutions to getting the problem under control.

Rauner kept intact the bill's efforts to focus drug courts on treatment instead of jail, require all police and fire departments in Illinois to stock a heroin antidote that has proved to be effective in saving lives, allow pharmacies to dispense a heroin antidote and encourage prevention education. Even if the funding part of the law is not approved, these efforts are important steps to take in this fight and need to be implemented. But we agree with others who say the elimination of the Medicaid funding will hurt those most vulnerable.

Even before the veto, advocates were concerned about the state's lack of funding for treatment as usage continues to rise. One warned succinctly, "How can that be anything but a recipe for disaster."

We urge our readers to tell their legislators to avoid that kind of disaster and override this veto.

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