Study: Drug Programs Cut Use By Half

Half of the people treated in federally funded drug-treatment programs had stopped using drugs a year later, according to a government study.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala called the news encouraging - and used the occasion to lobby for more federal funds for treatment programs.

The five-year, $12 million study followed about 6,500 people who were treated around the country. Follow-up interviews were conducted up discharge from the program and one year later.