How Effective is the "Push Out the Pusher" Program?

Nearly a year after the “Push out Pusher” campaign started, Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub says he is seeing results. He says the initiative has already led to several arrests, but he also said: “I can't get into details because most of those cases are still pending but we are pleased with the results.”

I got the same response from Newtown Chief Henry Pasqualini at the April 11, 2018, Newtown Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting (watch the 6-minute video clip below).

A critical part of the program is the six-detective “task force” that District Attorney Matt Weintraub hired to “root out” the pushers at a yearly cost of $885,400 (see here). What’s the Return on this investment?

While I am appreciative of all that Bucks County is doing to help fight the opioid epidemic, I think creating a 6-person drug task force at a cost of nearly a million dollars per year is a tactic that has been used before - i.e., the “war on drugs” - which has proven to be a failure. Meanwhile Bucks County residents are going to be stuck with the taxes to pay for this no matter the outcome of those cases (op cit).

Another concern I have is how this program jibes with Chief Pasqualini’s policy to help victims of addiction rather than arrest them. As the Chief explained in his comments to the BOS, “make not mistake, there are people out there that are peddling these drugs that are not actually users and this program focuses on them.”

Even so, I am concerned that some people may falsely believe that someone suffering from addiction is also a “pusher” and will call the number on the sign. Enter the special task force detectives who might coerce the victim to work as an informer – under threat of arrest for illegal use of drugs - to “root out” the so-called “pusher.” I know such tactics are often used as has been well-documented.

However, as the Chief also explained, the program makes people more aware of the problem, which is a good thing.

The biggest “pushers” of all, however, are the drug companies that have engaged in illegal marketing of opioids. Bucks County Commissioners obviously agree as they recently approved the hiring of a New York City-based law firm to file a civil claim against the manufacturers and distributors of opioid drugs (see here).

Further Reading:

• “Attacking the Root of the Opioid Crisis - Pharmaceutical Companies”


• “Opioid Manufacturers Paid Millions to Groups That Lobbied for More Opioid Usage, Senate Investigation Claims”


• “Founder of Insys Indicted for Bribing Docs to Illegally Prescribe Fentanyl. Lock Him Up!”

Posted on 19 Apr 2018, 13:25 - Category: Opioid Epidemic