There are approximately 2.3 million inmates incarcerated in U.S. prisons. Out of this number, more than 50 percent have a documented history of drug addiction and substance abuse. While it is true not all of these inmates were sentenced to prison on drug-related charges, in many cases their crimes directly resulted either from the need to feed their ongoing addiction or were committed as a direct result of being under the influence of a drug.

Drug-related arrests have risen steadily in the past two decades and the sad factor in this increase is that the numbers of repeat offenders are on the rise as well. It underscores one gaping area of neglect in an often futile war on drugs: the inability or unwillingness to rehabilitate drug users.

According to a report released by the National Institute on Drug Abuse in 2009, just one-fifth of prison inmates get some form of treatment for drug addictions. The report showed the success of prison drug rehabilitation programs, however, by noting that heroin addicts who received no treatment for their addiction were three times as likely to end back up in prison after serving their original term.

Obviously, drug treatment programs in prisons would go a long way toward helping inmates solve their problems and become functioning members of society again. The approach of state and federal government types is to punish addicts rather than heal them and that is the wrong way to look at the big picture.

By showing forth a humane side and curing the addiction, we can effectively reduce prison populations and funnel our tax dollars back into shoring up more worthwhile programs like education and healthcare.

Then, there is the issue of public safety. Do we really want to be a society of addicts and prisoners? Do we want such a bleak future for our children? A healthy nation is a nation that helps all of its citizens, rather than locking them away and trying to forget about them.