Pa. prison system reviews drug-treatment approach

HARRISBURG (AP) — Pennsylvania prison officials are reconsidering their approach to substance abuse treatment after a study showed no difference in recidivism rates between three-month and six-month programs.

The Department of Corrections said today it recently launched four-month pilot programs at some prisons in which 400 inmates will be studied over three years.

The study involves “therapeutic communities” where inmates with alcohol or drug problems live together and work to support each other as a group.

Corrections Secretary John Wetzel says that if the results are favorable, the state may be able to treat the inmates more efficiently without increasing the rate at which they re-offend.