UK to Look into Waiting Times for Rehab in the Wake of Amy Winehouse’s Death
As the family and friends of talented British singer, Amy Winehouse, bid her goodbye for the final time, MPs are gearing up to investigate the speed at which those who need help are given access to rehab.
A feature on The Telegraph shared that Keith Vaz, the chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, gave his word that MPs will investigate the speed at which addicts get access to rehab in the UK.
At the singer’s funeral, held Tuesday at Edgwarebury Cemetery in north London, Amy Winehouse’s father, Mitch Winehouse, shared to mourners that addicts have to wait for two years in order to get into rehab for treatments. Mr. Winehouse also stated that some addicts are so desperate to receive treatments, that they commit crimes so they could be sent to rehab quickly.
Mr. Winehouse said: “In this country, if you cannot afford a private rehabilitation clinic, there is a two-year waiting list for help. With the help of Keith Vaz MP, we are trying to change that.”
The National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA), however, is contesting this claim. The agency said that in 2009-2010, 94 percent of patients waited for rehabilitation for less than three weeks. In that period, the NTA was dealing with nearly 207,000 addicts.
Mr. Vaz share that “Mitch Winehouse gave powerful evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee during our inquiry into drugs in 2009… I am very happy to help Mitch in any way I can with his important campaign to help rehabilitate those most vulnerable in our society.”
