Geren eyes allowing anonymous drug rehab

Geren eyes allowing anonymous drug rehab

Company leaders irked at proposal, say troops’ command must know
By Brendan McGarry - Staff writer
Posted : Sunday Apr 12, 2009 8:28:40 EDT

The number of soldiers in drug rehab has risen 25 percent since 2003, and Army Secretary Pete Geren is weighing whether to make it easier for soldiers to volunteer for treatment — by letting them go without their commanders’ knowledge.

Some 10,262 soldiers received clinical counseling for alcohol or drug abuse in the Army Substance Abuse Program in fiscal 2008 — 1.8 percent of the active duty force. That’s an average of more than one soldier per company.

But some experts think the rate of drug abuse is much higher, and that if soldiers could commit themselves to ASAP without risk of retribution or concern about damaging their reputations with their commanders, the numbers would be much higher.

Geren is proposing that the Army suspend “commander notification for soldier self-referrals to ASAP treatment if the soldier prefers anonymity.”

Commanders don’t like that idea.
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