{Charleston, West Virginia}...Governor Earl Ray Tomblin established the Governor's Advisory Council on Substance Abuse last September by executive order. It's mission is to develop strategies to fight a pervasive drug culture in Appalachia that includes methamphetamine and prescription pill abuse. Friday, the council presented recommendations to Tomblin, including securing federal funding earmarked for substance abuse prevention, early intervention and treatment, encouraging recovering drug users to employment, including those facing job discrimination and options to prevent doctor shopping and accountability related to prescribing and dispensing prescription drugs. The report says state leaders can work toward ending the drug problem. The council receives recommendations from six regional task forces that spread across the state. Those task forces met three times each in a total of 18 West Virginia counties and will meet three more times through April.
