THE pilot outreach services program to help 'ice' users and their families in the Orana Region is a good move - anti-drug campaigners are desperate for reinforcements in the battle against the drug.
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Use of the drug became a hot national issue in 2015 as reports mounted on the devastating impacts it was having on users, families, communities, health services and so on.
Frontline police, paramedics and medical and hospital staff were being attacked by users they were trying to assist.
In Orana the prevalence of ice has been contributing to stubbornly high crime rates.
The NSW government's new program will see $1.4 million spent across four years on three outreach workers based at a Dubbo hub and taking help to users, addicts and families from Wellington to Cobar.
It will be run by Lyndon Community, which has a residential drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility at Orange.
The idea is to tackle ice addiction before it creates violence, the need for hospitalisation and health problems.
The social, health and economic impacts of ice so far have been huge prompting the federal government to pledge $300 million to fight the drug late last year.
Anti-drug campaigners will welcome the program but are likely to ask for more.
They are still gathering support to petition the NSW government for a drug rehabilitation centre in Dubbo.
The outreach program is welcome, but it is just one step in the battle against the ice scourge.
