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= Portugal's New Drug Policy = Like the United States, Portugal also once struggled with the use of illicit drugs. While both countries took critical action to try to put a stop to the negative outcomes posed by drug use, each approached the problem in drastically different ways. While the United States proceeded by making laws pertaining to drug use and possession stricter, Portugal advanced by decriminalizing all illicit drugs that were previously illegal. Instead of the increased incarcerations approach adopted by the U.S., Portugal favored rehabilitation efforts. Along with this policy change implementation, Portugal also emphasized the need to tackle addiction by launching a public health intervention which aimed to help people quit their addictive behaviors. With this program in motion, there has been an increase in the number of drug addicts receiving rehabilitation.

With the uptake of this policy, Portugal has seen a significant decrease in drug use as well as drug related deaths. Ten years after the introduction of the new drug policy, the percent of teens, 15-19 years old, using illicit drugs has decreased from 28% to 20%, and an 80% decrease in deaths caused by overdose has also been observed. As a public health action, the capital of Portugal, Lisbon, supplies methadone as a agonist substitution or opioid replacement theory (ORT) for opioid addiction, to those who are dependent on opioids and are seeking a means of rehabilitation. Another principle of Portugal's drug policy is to reduce harm caused by drug use through the supply of sterile syringes and needles to users. By including an exchange program, the government reduced the risk of HIV though the sharing of needles by 90%.