drugsNational Survey on Drug Use and Health

The Secretary of Health and Human Services just announced that illicit drug use among teenagers ages 12-17 declined by 9 percent in the last two years. The information is a result of the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which was released as part of National Alcohol Addiction and Recovery Month activities.


In a release from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Administrator Charles Curie said, “The news today is an indication that our partnerships and the work of prevention professionals, schools, parents, teachers, law enforcement, religious leaders, and local community anti-drug coalitions are paying off.”


Despite the good news, a growing area of concern is the continued increase of non-medical use of prescription drugs. Approximately 6 percent of young adults have abused these drugs within the last month and 29 percent in the last year. Narcotic pain relievers such as hydrocodone and oxycodone remain the most abused drugs in this area.


The drug category with the largest number of new users last year was non medical use of pain relievers (2.4 million new users), followed by marijuana (2.1 million new users), non medical use of tranquilizers (1.2 million new users) and cocaine (1.0 million new users).


The SAMHSA release also stated that the number of Americans aged 12 and older who need alcohol or drug addiction treatment is 23.5 million, yet less than ten percent actually received any type of rehabilitation services at a specialty facility.


© 2009 Drug-Free Alliance