http://www.iowapolitics.com/index.Iml?Article=175460

This was today………..

“Director R. Gil Kerlikowske, during a Roundtable discussion with officials at the Iowa Capitol in Des Moines.

The report includes the following recommendations by Iowa’s Drug Policy Coordinator:

· Regulate Salvia divinorum by making it a Schedule 1 Controlled Substance, to protect Iowans from the potentially intense and debilitating effects of this hallucinogenic herb.

· Require utilization of Iowa’s Prescription Monitoring Program by all prescribers (physicians, etc.) and pharmacists, and increase law enforcement access to the database, to improve patient care and citizen safety.

· Require full substance abuse and mental health parity to increase access to treatment, reduce crime and retain workers in Iowa.

· Require substance abuse prevention education as part of the Iowa Core Curriculum, to enhance student health and prevent unsafe behavior.

· Resist efforts to legalize the smoking of marijuana for medical or other purposes, based on the consensus of science and other medical evidence.

· Enhance community-based corrections supervision of offenders, including drug testing, to improve offender rehabilitation and accountability in a cost-efficient manner.

· Continue enhancing and implementing a comprehensive plan to reduce underage and binge drinking, including possible policy changes and environmental prevention strategies.

The complete 2009 Iowa Drug Control Strategy can be viewed at: http://www.iowa.gov/odcp.