Representatives of the Romanian Anti-AIDS Association (ARAS) stated Monday in a press conference that the center they run in the “Matei Bals” institute, which offers methadone-substituted therapy for drug consumers, has 200 taken seats and a waiting list of 350 people.
The failure of one person to follow the methadone treatment means a chance for another person waiting for a vacancy.
“When a place becomes vacant, this means that someone has given up. The 350th person in line would have to wait three years to be accepted into the program, but when a drug addict decides to try and kick the habit, he should have immediate access to treatment, not be delayed,” said ARAS executive director Maria Georgescu. She also said that, due to this shortage of places, the price of methadone on the black market is on the rise.
Bucharest has two centers owned by the Ministry of Health, three owned by the National Antidrug Agency and a private ARAS center at the “Matei Bals” institute; this comes down to around a thousand spots for people who want to receive methadone treatment.
Maria Georgescu stated that the association spends 500 lei (EUR1=RON4.2939) per patient per month; this includes the methadone, social assistance and other administrative expenses. The costs are supported by the association through international funds. The length of the therapy itself varies between six months and the patient’s lifetime. It does not mean detoxification, but it cancels the effects of withdrawal, stabilizes the patient and reduces crime rate, which NGOs use to emphasize the treatment’s importance.
In 2008, the National Antidrug Agency estimated that there are around 16,800 drug consumers in Bucharest. The prevalent drugs are heroin, cannabis and cocaine.