 In the 1950s and 1960s a small number of doctors contributed to an alarming increase in the number of drug-addicted people in the U.K. through excessive prescribing—the U.K. switched to more restrictive drug legislation as a result.However, the British government is again moving towards a consideration of heroin prescription as a legitimate component of the National Health Service (NHS).Evidence has clearly shown that methadone maintenance is not appropriate for all opioid-dependent people and that heroin is a viable maintenance drug that has shown equal or better rates of success.