In 2001, Portugal dramatically changed its approach to addiction and decriminalized all drugs. The country has long championed how treating addiction as a health issue and not a criminal one has helped reduce problematic drug use. Nearly 20 years later, Oregon has become the first US state to decriminalize hard drugs, with voters approving the measure in November. The state is pulling directly from Portugal’s playbook, but can it really translate across the Atlantic? The World’s Elana Gordon brings us the story from the Portuguese capitol, Lisbon.
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