Faith-based treatments for addiction dominate in Puerto Rico.(Treatment Modalities)

Faith-based drug treatment programs dominate the addiction treatment field in Puerto Rico, according to a brief article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Helena Hansen of Yale University School of Medicine writes that addictions are a significant problem in Puerto Rico, which has been identified as the Caribbean epicenter of the illicit cocaine and heroin trade between Latin America and the U.S. A 1998 household-based survey of Puerto Rican adults aged 15 to 64 years found that 5.6% of the population was in need of substance abuse treatment. Between 2000 and 2003, Puerto Rico's drug-related homicide rate was 3 times the U.S. average. …