Vancouver Clinic to Offer Heroin on Prescription

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Vancouver adds prescription heroin for hard-core addicts to its arsenal in the war against drugs this week, despite U.S. criticism that its trial is a sign of Canadian weakness in the battle against illegal drugs.

Medical researchers with the new clinic, North America's first trial of prescription heroin, say their motives are not political. They hope to test if prescribing heroin can help addicts who have not been able to kick their habits through traditional programs like methadone treatment or abstinence.