Prisons testing new tactic for drug addiction

U.S. prisons are experimenting with a high-priced monthly injection that could help addicted inmates stay off opioids after they are released, but skeptics question its effectiveness and say the manufacturer has aggressively marketed an unproven drug to corrections officials.

Dr. Joshua Lee of New York University’s medical school said more evidence is needed to determine whether the medication can help substantial numbers of people and whether it’s worth paying for, but the early results are encouraging.

Vivitrol is emerging as the nation searches for ways to ease an opioid epidemic that affects more than 2 million Americans and an estimated 15 percent of the U.S. prison population.

Many experts view prisons — where addiction’s human toll can be seen most clearly — as a natural place to discover what works.

Christopher Wolf had already served prison time for nonviolent crimes when he was ordered into treatment for a heroin addiction by a judge who suggested Vivitrol.

“You couldn’t design something better for the criminal justice system,” said David Farabee of UCLA, who leads a Vivitrol study in a New Mexico jail.