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The Miami Coalition, The Hispanic Crime Prevention Program, Center for Administration of Justice, Florida International University and The F.I.U. Community-Based Intervention Research Group to Showcase HBO's New Documentary ADDICTION at 'Town Hall Meeting

Posted on: Monday, 5 March 2007, 09:00 CST

RICHMOND, Va., March 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- HBO has produced ADDICTION, a hard-hitting, 14-part, multi-media documentary series to draw attention to this very misunderstood medical disease. To highlight the local impact of addiction as well as local resources for treatment and long-term recovery, The Miami Coalition, The Hispanic Crime Prevention Program, Center for Administration of Justice, Florida International University and The F.I.U. Community-Based Intervention Group is hosting a screening of ADDICTION on:

March 8, 2007, 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at F.I.U. South-University Park Campus,

GUC Ballroom East Wing, 11200 S.W. 8 St., Miami, Florida 33199.

The event will include a panel discussion with local addiction experts and treatment providers. The Miami Coalition is cosponsoring this event in conjunction with national patient advocacy groups in the hope of educating residents of Miami both to the terrible toll that addiction takes locally, as well as to the medical help and psychosocial support that are available to bring Miami patients into treatment for long-term recovery. The screening will also include a discussion featuring, Eric F. Wagner, PhD, F.I.U. (Community-Based Intervention Research Group, Hispanic Crime Prevention) and Alina Sosa-Perez (LCSW, The Miami Coalition). Media are urged to attend the screening and take this opportunity to give a local voice to the problem of addiction - continuing the positive trend set by HBO.

The feature-length HBO centerpiece film ADDICTION will premiere on THURSDAY, MARCH 15 (9:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT). This main documentary as well as the rest of the 14-part series will also be aired several times during the "HBO free weekend," March 15-18. HBO is also partnering with three national patient advocacy groups to host city premieres across the country similar to the one here in Miami on March 8, 2007. HBO created ADDICTION in partnership with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). For more information on local "Town Hall Meetings" in Miami and across the country, visit http://www.addictionaction.org/. Information on the HBO series ADDICTION is available at http://www.hbo.com/addiction.

ADDICTION spotlights abuse of a range of substances, including dependence on opioids (prescription painkillers such as oxycodone, fentanyl, hydrocodone and morphine as well as heroin). Local problems with opioids reflect the national data on this growing public health problem -- the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reports that approximately 4.7 million people currently misuse prescription pain relievers, second only to marijuana use. One medical treatment for opioid dependence that can be

prescribed in a private doctor's office - buprenorphine - is highlighted in HBO's documentary.

Resources for Opioid Dependence and Its Treatment

Individuals who need more information about opioid dependence and its treatment, either for themselves or for someone they are concerned about, have several options. Free educational Resource Kits on this topic can be obtained from turntohelp.com or by calling 1-866-455-TURN, both provided by Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals. Turntohelp.com also offers a physician locator designed to help individuals find an area doctor available to prescribe buprenorphine.

Additionally, the non-profit patient advocacy group NAABT - National Alliance of Advocates for Buprenorphine Treatment - is dedicated to helping educate the public on opioid dependence and medical treatment in a private doctor's office. NAABT now offers a nationwide confidential matching service to pair individuals seeking buprenorphine treatment with available doctors; visit naabt.org. SAMHSA's Web site also provides a physician locator and other valuable information at buprenorphine.samhsa.gov.

About Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company that markets Suboxone(R) (buprenorphine HCl/naloxone HCl dihydrate [2 mg/0.5 mg and 8 mg/2 mg]) C-III Sublingual Tablets and Subutex(R) (buprenorphine HCl [2 mg and 8 mg]) C-III Sublingual Tablets, formulations of buprenorphine used to treat opioid dependence in a medical office-based setting. Suboxone and Subutex, manufactured by Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare Ltd., are the only controlled medications under the Drug Addiction Treatment Act of 2000 approved by the FDA for office-based treatment of opioid dependence. Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals Inc. is committed to expanding access to medical therapies for patients suffering from the chronic, relapsing brain disease of opioid dependence. For more information, visit suboxone.com or opioiddependence.com. Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Reckitt Benckiser PLC, a publicly traded UK firm.

Important Safety Information

Intravenous use of buprenorphine, usually in combination with benzodiazepines or other CNS depressants has been associated with significant respiratory depression and death. Suboxone(R) and Subutex(R) have potential for abuse and produces dependence of the opioid type with a milder withdrawal syndrome than full agonists. Cytolytic hepatitis and hepatitis with jaundice have been observed in the addicted population receiving buprenorphine. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies of Suboxone or Subutex (a pregnancy category C medication) in pregnancy. Due caution should be exercised when driving cars or operating machinery. The most commonly reported adverse events with Suboxone have included headache (36%, placebo 22%), withdrawal syndrome (25%, placebo 37%), pain (22%, placebo 19%), nausea (15%, placebo 11%), insomnia (14%, placebo 16%), sweating (14%, placebo 10%). See full prescribing information for complete information at suboxone.com.

Suboxone and Subutex are registered trademarks of Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare Ltd.

Contact Information: Cory Tromblee (617) 761-6715 cory.tromblee@fkhealth.com

Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals Inc.

CONTACT: Cory Tromblee for Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals Inc.,+1-617-761-6715, or cory.tromblee@fkhealth.com

Web site: http://www.addictionaction.org/http://www.hbo.com/addictionhttp://www.turntohelp.com/http://www.naabt.org/http://www.buprenorphine.samhsa.gov/http://www.suboxone.com/http://www.opioiddependence.com/

Source: PRNewswire-USNewswire

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