It is the relative cheapness that makes treatment so cost-effective. Many other studies show that treatment works. In 1996, for instance, the U.S. government released a study of hard-core users in treatment. Overall, drug consumption decreased by roughly 50 percent. This is not to deny the reality of relapse.
Most addicts require two, three, or more exposures to treatment before the process takes hold.
Over time, though, treatment produces dramatic reductions in drug use and related crime. In one analysis, California found that, for every dollar invested in treatment, the state saved seven dollars, mostly from reductions in crime and health-care costs.