Community seeks solution to drug problem

Problems with prescription drug abuse in the Annapolis Valley brought nearly 80 people together Thursday night in Kingston.

Many of the people who attended the public meeting have been touched personally by addiction.

That includes Jim MacDonald, whose daughter Katannadied two weeks ago from a methadone overdose. He believes she got it from someone who was prescribed the drug, and allowed to take it home.

"We don't let our prisoners get out of a halfway house and give them their guns or weapons back, so why are we letting people take this out? It's a lethal drug," he said.

Leslie Tilley is lobbying for more education about prescription drug abuse in schools.

"This hits home because I have a daughter that's 25 years old, and she's buried over 20 of her friends since 2005, so I figured it's time to hit the streets," she said.

Local MLA Leo Glavine wants better protocols for administering methadone, and he wants the province to look into other alternatives for treating opiate addiction. Glavine plans to draft recommendations that he hopes to present to the health minister next week.