Treating Addiction - Saving Money but Not Lives - NYTimes.com Re "Heroin in New England, More Abundant and Deadly" (news article, July 19): The increase in heroin deaths is both tragic and unnecessary. We have accumulated 50 years of research and clinical practice experience in effectively treating opioid addiction with federally approved medications such as methadone, and, more recently, buprenorphine and naltrexone/Vivitrol. Maine's governor and members of the State Legislature have cut funding for opioid addiction treatment services in the state and have sought to limit access to treatment. Their actions have been explained as trying to save some money. One can only wonder what their explanations would be to the families with loved ones who suffer from the disease of addiction and subsequently die as a result of not getting access to care. MARK W. PARRINO President, American Association for the Treatment of Opioid Dependence New York, July 19, 2013 While increases in heroin addiction and overdoses in northern New England may be the result of new restrictions on prescriptions for pain medication along with heroin distributors moving in to fill the demand, what drives addiction can be found in the words of the young addict quoted in the article: "The heroin numbs the pain" and "It's the best feeling ever." No doubt that is what most heroin addicts would say, and it is at the core of this self-medicating behavior. I overcame my own addiction to heroin 45 years ago and learned that the pain I was medicating was depression. I've also learned that we can save lives by helping addicts understand the root of their problem and teaching them coping and self-management skills. The writer is president and chief executive of Exponents, which helps people affected by drug addiction and H.I.V./AIDS.