Opiate detox will make you want to die. Alcohol detox can kill.
That being said, I don't think that heroin addicts are exactly being coddled. Nearly everyone I met in rehab that was a recovering opiate addict had been jailed. It's getting a lot of attention now because so many people are dying from overdoses. People do die from alcohol, but it's generally a longer, slower process and alcohol related deaths are more often from accidents and misadventures than overdose.
As far as societal acceptance, I'd far rather be an alcoholic than a junkie.