Congressman Kinzinger presses issue of heroin use in Illinois

WASHINGTON (AP) – Heroin is an issue in the Illinois Valley and your congressman wants to meet with the top U.S. law enforcer to talk treatment strategies for heroin addiction.

A letter sent by Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger and Democrat Bobby Rush urges Attorney General Eric Holder’s Department of Justice to take a comprehensive approach in dealing with heroin use. Kinzinger says treatment medications combined with counseling and case management can do more to curb heroin abuse than prison alone.

Heroin-related deaths have risen in certain areas of the state, most notably in suburban Chicago and in southwestern Illinois.