Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
The potential motivation of criminal addicts for methadone treatment was tested in the New York City Correctional Institute for Men. Of 165 inmates seen, all with records of five or more jail sentences, 116 (70 per cent) applied for treatment after a single interview. None of them had previously made application to the methadone program. Of 18 randomly selected from all applicants with release dates between January 1 and April 30, 1968, 12 were started on methadone before they left jail and then referred to the program for aftercare. None of them became readdicted to heroin, and nine of 12 had no further convictions during the 50 weeks of follow-up study. All of an untreated control group became readdicted after release from jail, and 15 of 16 were convicted of new crimes during the same follow-up period.
Dole et al. (1969) studied this question.