Oregon's Drug Decriminalization Law Faces Growing Pushback Amid Fentanyl Crisis

RedFox@infosec.pub to News@lemmy.world – 64 points – Oregon's Drug Decriminalization Law Faces Growing Pushback Amid Fentanyl Crisis
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This is interesting.

Firstly, I love that states inherently have the power to set their own laws. This allowed Oregon to be a great large scale experiment for drug policy.

I saw some interesting quotes:

But estimates from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show, among the states reporting data, Oregon had the highest increase in synthetic opioid overdose fatalities when comparing 2019 and the 12-month period ending June 30, a 13-fold surge from 84 deaths to more than 1,100.

Despite public perception, the law has made some progress by directing $265 million dollars of cannabis tax revenue toward standing up the state's new addiction treatment infrastructure.

I guess since only cannabis is sold, it's the only taxable substance in the mix.

Some lawmakers have suggested focusing on criminalizing public drug use rather than possession. Alex Kreit, assistant professor of law at Northern Kentucky University and director of its Center on Addiction Law and Policy, said such an approach could help curb visible drug use on city streets but wouldn't address what's largely seen as the root cause: homelessness.

Homelessness leads to drug use? Or drug use leads to homelessness? Couldn't it be either?

In the first year after the law took effect in February 2021, only 1% of people who received citations for possession sought help via the hotline, state auditors found.

Critics of the law say this doesn't create an incentive to seek treatment.

Thoughts:

  • Maybe just start with cannabis and see how that goes? Or do we really need to progress collectively to heroine, meth, cocaine, MDMA?

  • Is the major public health crisis the use of more illicit drugs, or overdoses? Is possible that recreational use of cocaine/MDMA/others wouldn't be as big of a crisis as meth and fentanyl?

  • Should heroine be legal for use?

  • Should MDMA be legal for use?

  • Should cocaine be legal for use?

( I am not advocating for or against use of these substances with this post. Posted for discussion/interest. Questions are posed for discussion. )

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Did homelessness increase as well as rent and cost of living during the time frames they are using?

Covid probably doesn't help the veracity of the results comparing to 2019 either.

I'm on a phone, so this is the low effort result I'm got from copilot ( I know...I know...):

According to the data from my internal tools, the cost of living in Portland, Oregon is higher than the national average in most categories. Here are some of the key findings:

  • The average rent for an apartment in Portland is $1,728⁵, which is 35% higher than the national median of $1,280[^10^]. The average rent varies depending on the size, location, and quality of the apartment. The price range for all bedrooms and all property types is $485 to $15,000⁵.
  • The average annual consumer expenditure of consumer units in Portland is $61,334[^10^], which is slightly lower than the national average of $61,483¹¹. However, the percentage of spending on housing and housing-related costs is higher in Portland (34.9%) than in the U.S. (32.8%)[^10^].
  • The cost of living index in Portland is 127.7, which means the total cost of housing, food, childcare, transportation, healthcare, taxes, and other necessities is 27.7% higher than the U.S. average of 100⁷. The cost of living index varies depending on the source and methodology used. For example, another source reports the cost of living index in Portland as 136.3¹².
  • The cost of living in Portland is influenced by several factors, such as the high demand for housing, the relatively high income taxes, the environmental regulations, and the quality of life⁹. Portland is also known for its cultural diversity, progressive values, and natural beauty⁹. Some of the benefits of living in Portland include the public transportation system, the bike-friendly infrastructure, the access to outdoor recreation, and the vibrant arts and food scene⁹.

Source: Conversation with Bing, 2/18/2024 (1) Average Rent in Portland & Rent Prices by Neighborhood - RentCafe. https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/or/portland/. (2) Examining The Cost Of Living By State In 2024 - Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/mortgages/cost-of-living-by-state/. (3) U.S. cost of living - statistics & facts | Statista. https://www.statista.com/topics/768/cost-of-living/. (4) Cost of Living in Portland, OR 2024 | RentCafe. https://www.rentcafe.com/cost-of-living-calculator/us/or/portland/. (5) Cost of Living in the United States: 2202 cities compared - Livingcost.org. https://livingcost.org/cost/united-states. (6) The Cost of Living in Portland in 2022 | Rent. Blog. https://www.rent.com/blog/cost-of-living-in-portland/. (7) Portland, OR Cost of Living - Sperling's BestPlaces. https://www.bestplaces.net/cost_of_living/city/oregon/portland. (8) Cost of Living in Portland, Oregon. Feb 2024. Prices in Portland - Numbeo. https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/in/Portland. (9) Cost of Living in Portland, OR: rent, food, transport [2023]. https://livingcost.org/cost/united-states/or/portland. (10) Cost of Living in Portland, Oregon. Updated Prices Feb 2024. - Expatistan. https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/portland. (11) Average Rental Price in Portland, OR & Market Trends - Zillow. https://www.zillow.com/rental-manager/market-trends/portland-or/. (12) Average Rent in Portland, OR - 2024 Rent Prices by Neighborhood. https://www.apartments.com/rent-market-trends/portland-or/. (13) Cost of Living Index by State 2024 - World Population Review. https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/cost-of-living-index-by-state. (14) Cost of Living in United States - Numbeo. https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?country=United+States.

At face value, based on summarized data, looks like it's expensive there.

Is that sole causation for increase homelessness? Or just a contributing factor an addition to drug use? 🤔