For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
September 10, 2004
National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, 2004 by the President of the United States of America a Proclamation
Across our country, millions of Americans suffer from the
debilitating effects of alcohol and drug abuse. Substance abuse
shatters lives, divides families, and robs people of their promise and
potential.
My Administration is confronting these dangers. We are pursuing an
ambitious, focused strategy to cut demand for drugs at home, disrupt
supplies abroad, and ensure that citizens living with addiction get the
treatment they need. We have made progress in fighting substance
abuse, but there is more to do.
One of the worst decisions our children can make is to endanger
their lives and their futures with alcohol or drugs. My Administration
is addressing this problem with a strategy of education, treatment, and
law enforcement. We also support random student drug testing as a
prevention tool. We are seeing the results of all of these efforts, as
more of our young people are also choosing to avoid alcohol and drugs.
Drug use among youth has declined by 11 percent from 2001 to 2003.
My Administration is committed to expanding the choice of service
providers for those struggling with addiction. We recognize the
success of faith-based and community approaches in which caring
citizens join together to offer alternatives to traditional treatment,
helping people change habits by changing their hearts. Through the
Access to Recovery initiative, we have provided an additional $100
million in new grants this year to expand options for substance abuse
treatment and recovery support services through vouchers, which allow
individuals to choose the services that best meet their recovery
needs. In my 2005 budget, I have proposed doubling funding for this
initiative to further expand treatment. In total, I have requested
$3.7 billion for drug treatment and research programs for 2005, an
increase of about 25 percent since 2001.
The struggle against substance abuse is a community effort, and
this month is an opportunity to further raise awareness and support the
fight against the destructive cycle of addiction. I call on all
Americans to make responsible and healthy choices so that everyone can
realize the great promise of our Nation.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States
of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution
and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2004 as
National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month. I call upon the
people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate
programs, ceremonies, and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of
September, in the year of our Lord two thousand four, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and
twenty-ninth.
GEORGE W. BUSH
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