The "British System" of Heroin Maintenance

Abstract

To the Editor.— The system of opium prohibition produces exorbitant prices, intolerable crime, and frustrating and expensive attempts at criminal control. In England, the pharmacy cost of heroin is 4 cents a grain. The street price in the United States is $30 to $90 a grain or about a 1,000-fold increase over the legal price. 1(p28-29) This astronomical profit margin provides incentive for continued smuggling, and accounts for the fact that addicts commit 75% to 80% of the crime in New York City. 2 It is estimated on the basis of 350,000 addicts (which is a conservative figure) that the annual cost of heroin purchases is about $1.5 billion. About $100 million is obtained by legal activity, about $500 million by prostitution, and about $900 million by property crimes. About $2.60 worth of property is required to yield $1 in cash. So the cost to victims of property crimes is