Drug treatment cuts criminal activity by as much as two-thirds.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons found that inmates who got drug treatment were 73 percent less likely to be re-arrested than those who did not. Other studies have found that addicts who get treatment are less likely to be homeless, less likely to need hospital care and more likely to give birth to drug-free babies. Yet no matter how many times these statistics are recounted, they just don't seem to sink in. State and federal governments continue to focus on locking up addicts instead of helping them kick the habit. Just one-third goes to treatment and prevention.