Natalie Tennant on Drugs

Federal registry to prevent "doctor shopping

It costs us less to rehabilitate than to jail someone

A: You know, this one is a huge concern of mine. I worry about the drug epidemic. This is a scary thought: It does not discriminate. It's all across the board. No matter who you are, you could become addicted to prescription medication. It's killing people. It tears families apart. It's driving up our crime. And it's overcrowding our jails as well. And what I'm going to do is bring together the medical community, the pharmacists, the educators, the judicial community, in terms of law enforcement, as well, and we address it with programs to make sure we get the illegal drugs off the street, that we also educate folks and that we have rehabilitation in place. Because it's another do-it-now or do-it-later aspect, that it costs us less to rehabilitate than it does to house someone.

Focus on rehabilitation for drug abuse

Tennant said funds earmarked for treatment, recovery and rehabilitation must be proven to be used efficiently. "If we're going to put $500,000 in a program, let's see how it's spent and then increase funding from there," she said. "It goes back to accountability and transparency."