The Vermont Department of Health issued the following news release:

Ten Vermont communities will screen and discuss the HBO "Addiction" documentary series starting on March 16 at treatment centers, teen centers, town halls and recovery centers around the state. These "house parties" are designed to encourage discussion about how communities can better address treatment and recovery from addiction to drugs and alcohol. The series was kicked off on March 15 with a 27-minute screening of the series' highlights and discussion among legislators and addiction experts at the Statehouse in Montpelier.

The HBO Addiction series was created to provide guidance on an array of issues including how addiction is a brain disease and a treatable illness, relapse is part of the disease - not a sign of failure, and the sooner an addict gets into treatment, the better. Participating communities are: St. Albans (March 16); Barre, Brattleboro, Burlington, Middlebury, Springfield, Vergennes (March 17); Cabot (March 23) St. Johnsbury and Bradford (March 31). For up-to-date information (and schedule changes due to weather) visit: friendsofrecoveryvt.org.

Currently, addiction affects 23.2 million Americans, and only about 10 percent are receiving the treatment they need. Nearly one in 10 Americans over the age of 12 are classified with substance abuse or dependence addiction, according to the National Institutes of Health.

An estimated 10 percent of Vermonters and 26 percent of adults age 18 to 25 have a dependence on - or have abused - illicit drugs or Alcohol in the past year, according to 2005 State Estimates of Substance Use & Mental Health by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The community events precede a March 30 "Day of Recovery" event at the Statehouse with Gov. James Douglas hosted by Friends of Recovery - Vermont.

Friends of Recovery - Vermont(exit VDH) is a grassroots advocacy organization, formed in 1998, that helps spread the word about the value of recovery from drug and Alcohol addiction.Contact: Patty McCarthy, 802/229-6103.