Four years ago, the state decriminalized the personal possession of all drugs, such as cocaine and meth. Now it’s trying to course-correct with House Bill 4002 — and might make a mistake in the process.

Four years ago, the state decriminalized all drugs. Now it’s trying to course-correct — and might make a mistake in the process.

In 2020, it looked as though the war on drugs would begin to end in Oregon.

After Measure 110 was passed that year, Oregon became the first state in the US to decriminalize personal possession of all drugs that had been outlawed by the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, ranging from heroin and cocaine to LSD and psychedelic mushrooms. When it went into effect in early 2021, the move was celebrated by drug reform advocates who had long been calling for decriminalization in the wake of President Nixon’s failed war on drugs.

Now, amid a spike in public drug use and overdoses, Oregon is in the process of reeling back its progressive drug laws, with a new billthat aims to reinstate lighter criminal penalties for personal drug possession. And while the target is deadly drugs like fentanyl, the law would also result in banning non-clinical use of psychedelics like MDMA, DMT, or psilocybin — drugs that are unconnected to the current overdose epidemic and the public displays of drug use.

  • jordanlund@lemmy.world
    0·
    10 months ago

    110 was a massive failure that needs to be un-done, any issues with less problematic drugs can be handled on a one by one basis like we did with marijuana.

    • hudson@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      0·
      10 months ago

      110 failed because it was never fully-implemented. The intent was to have support systems in place that were never funded and set up. As a result, this is what happened.

        • hudson@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          0·
          10 months ago

          What support? There was no support. Even the article you posted goes into detail how the state never followed through with it plans to provide the critical infrastructure needed for treatment, for alternatives to jail or prison, or anything else that 110 promised. They just made drugs legal and called it a day.

          • jordanlund@lemmy.world
            0·
            10 months ago

            Again, you need the support systems if people actually sought treatment, but they never did seek treatment.

            We didn’t have long lines of people waiting for non-existent treatment centers, out of 16,000 people ticketed under 110, less than 150 sought treatment, which was well within current capacity.

              • jordanlund@lemmy.world
                0·
                10 months ago

                There is existing help, 110 was to provide ADDITIONAL funding, presumably to assist with what was expected to be a mass influx of new patients.

                That influx never happened, because treatment was 100% optional.

                  • jordanlund@lemmy.world
                    0·
                    10 months ago

                    Better, I read it and I’ve been living in the middle of it since it took effect in 2021.

                    We have always had addiction services, those haven’t gone anywhere. 110 was to provide additional funding for them, again, under the presumption that more dollars would be needed because more people would seek treatment.

                    Funding which, surprise, wasn’t needed because people would rather get high than get clean.

                    Causing a MASSIVE increase in overdose calls:

                    https://www.opb.org/article/2024/01/28/data-show-overdoses-deaths-rising-in-oregon/

                    “In 2019, 280 people died of a drug overdose in Oregon. Fatalities rose every year after, more than tripling by 2022, when 956 died. And last year, even more people died, according to preliminary data. Each month the number has been higher than the previous year, reaching 628 in June. The state is still compiling data for 2023, but if the trends continue, the total would reach 1,250 deaths from an overdose.”

                    So, again, keep in mind, 110 kicked in in 2021. 2019 was under the old rules.

                    Those are Oregon numbers as a whole, and just deaths, not emergency calls for overdoses. Portlabd had over 7,000 overdose calls in 2023 by itself:

                    https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/portland-fire-launches-overdose-response-program/283-5911d3f5-54f0-4c6b-9e01-0e0f1566c2b2o

                    “Last year, Portland Fire & Rescue responded to nearly 7,000 overdose calls. A third of them happened in the downtown core, according to the bureau.”