ReconsiDer Tidbits

Since America's drug policy (prohibition) does not allow for a regulated drug market the harms caused by drugs continue to increase in many areas. Since product purity and dosage are not regulated, overdose caused emergency room visits increased 14% last year. Since we are forbidden to teach our children about reducing the harms that can be caused by illegal drugs , (such as the danger of dehydration when using Ecstasy),  and only allowed to teach abstinance, Ecstasy related emergency visits have increased from a 1994 level of 253 to 4,511 last year. Yes, of course there is far more Ectasy use these days then there was in 1994 so the numbers are higher. That only proves the point that prohibition not only doesn't reduce drug use, but it adds significantly to the harms to society caused by this use. If we are serious about protecting our kids from drugs we'd better reconsider what we're doing!
 
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New Trends Released for Drug Related Emergency Department Visits

WASHINGTON, July 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Emergency department visits involving the
club drug MDMA (Ecstasy) increased 58 percent, from 2,850 visits in 1999 to
4,511 in 2000 in the continental United States.  The number of
heroin/morphine related visits increased 15 percent, from 84,409 to 97,287.
These and other significant trends in drug related emergency department
visits are reported for the first time today with the release of the
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) 2000
Emergency Department Data from the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN).

Among 21 metropolitan areas covered by DAWN, 7 had increases in drug related
emergency department visits from 1999 to 2000: 32 percent in Seattle (from
8,426 to 11,116), 28 percent in Boston (from 11,699 to 14,902), 22 percent in
Los Angeles (from 20,678 to 25,288), 20 percent in Miami (from 7,128 to
8,560), 16 percent in Chicago (from 26,158 to 30,330), 12 percent in
Minneapolis (from 4,643 to 5,198), and 9 percent in Phoenix (from 8,293 to
9,072).

Drug related emergency department visits decreased 19 percent in Baltimore
(from 14,172 to 11,505) and 12 percent in San Francisco (from 8,930 to
7,857). No overall changes were reported in Atlanta (11,114 visits), Buffalo
(2,899), Dallas (6,798), Denver (4,946), Detroit (17,042), New Orleans
(4,664), New York (31,885), Newark (7,749), Philadelphia (23,433), St. Louis
(6,908), San Diego (7,094), and Washington, DC (10,303).

"This report shows again that we face serious gaps in preventing and treating
substance abuse, especially with club drugs," said Health and Human Services
Secretary Tommy G. Thompson.  "Our first line of defense against substance
abuse must be prevention.  We need to reach out to people before they become
statistics in emergency departments -- or worse, in the morgue. This is why
it's so important for Congress to move quickly to approve the
Administration's drug prevention and treatment budget."...

"We use DAWN to help pinpoint regional drug epidemics in the making and
prepare communities to address the problems," said Joseph H. Autry III, M.D.
acting SAMHSA Administrator.  "SAMHSA's Targeted Capacity Expansion grants
are available to help mayors, town and county officials put into place
effective treatment services for emerging drug epidemics or related public
health problems, including HIV/AIDS, at the earliest possible stages.  These
grants have been used by communities to respond to the outbreak of
methamphetamine use in the Southwest and the dramatic heroin increases
reported in localized areas in the Northeast."

Illicit Drugs  

In 2000, the estimated number of emergency department visits related to
marijuana/hashish use, 16 percent (96,446), continued to be about the same as
the number of visits related to heroin/morphine (97,287).  Cocaine-related
visits constituted 29 percent (174,896) of all drug related visits in 2000,
more than any other illicit substance measured by DAWN.  The number of
marijuana/hashish and cocaine related visits were statistically unchanged
from 1999 to 2000.

Cocaine  

>From 1999 to 2000, cocaine mentions increased significantly in 6 of the 21
metropolitan areas in DAWN: 35 percent in Los Angeles (from 6,772 to 9,111),
32 percent in Seattle (from 2,520 to 3,338), 19 percent in Atlanta (from
5,236 to 6,229), 15 percent in Boston (from 3,560 to 4,101), 11 percent in
Chicago (from 13,399 to 14,871), and 9 percent in Miami (from 4,018 to
4,318). Decreases in cocaine mentions were observed in 4 of the 21
metropolitan areas: 29 percent in Baltimore (from 6,921 to 4,943), 13 percent
in Newark (from 3,124 to 2,726), 10 percent in Washington DC (from 3,150 to
2,830), and 7 percent in New Orleans (from 2,140 to 1,998).

Heroin/morphine  

Eight of the 21 metropolitan areas had increases in heroin/morphine mentions
between 1999 and 2000.  They were: 58 percent in Miami (from 921 to 1,459),
50 percent in New Orleans (from 664 to 996), 35 percent in Boston (from 2,874
to 3,888), 31 percent in Buffalo (from 525 to 687), 29 percent in Chicago
(from 9,725 to 12,564), 26 percent in Detroit (from 2,678 to 3,369), 17
percent in Atlanta (from 432 to 507), and 14 percent in Minneapolis (from 207
to 237).  Heroin/morphine mentions decreased 23 percent in Baltimore (from
7,013 to 5,414) and 10 percent in San Francisco (from 3,074 to 2,773).

Marijuana/hashish  

Seven of the 21 metropolitan areas experienced significant increases in
marijuana/hashish mentions between 1999 and 2000: 75 percent in Seattle (from
808 to 1,414), 50 percent in Boston (from 1,961 to 2,945), 38 percent in
Miami (from 1,285 to 1,770), 33 percent in San Francisco (from 470 to 627),
28 percent in Minneapolis (from 627 to 803), 20 percent in Denver (from 681
to 818), and 18 percent in Chicago (from 4,561 to 5,401).

Methamphetamine/speed  

Overall, methamphetamine/speed was mentioned in 2 percent of drug related
emergency department visits in 2000.  From 1999 to 2000,
methamphetamine/speed mentions increased 29 percent, from 10,447 to 13,513. 
Looking across the 10 metropolitan areas with at least 100 mentions of
methamphetamine/speed in 1999 or 2000, significant increases from 1999 to
2000 were evident in 6: 76 percent in Phoenix (from 341 to 600), 53 percent
in Seattle (from 353 to 540), 51 percent in Los Angeles (from 910 to 1,375),
35 percent in Dallas (from 100 to 135), 31 percent in Atlanta (from 83 to
109), and 28 percent in San Diego (from 584 to 747).  Methamphetamine/speed
estimates were stable in San Francisco (591 mentions in 2000), St. Louis
(162), Minneapolis (153), and Denver (110).

Club Drugs  

Mentions of club drugs, so called because of their association with "raves"
and dance clubs, have increased dramatically since 1994.  Significant
increases in club drug related emergency department visits are reported
between 1994 and 2000 for GHB (from 56 to 4,969), MDMA (from 253 to 4,511),
and Ketamine (from 19 to 263).  The apparent increase in Rohypnol mentions
(from 13 to 469) during this time is within the margin of error and not
statistically significant.

Club drugs tend to be used by young people.  About 31 percent of DAWN
emergency department cases overall involve patients age 25 and under, at
least 80 percent of Rohypnol and MDMA mentions, over 70 percent of Ketamine
mentions, and 60 percent of GHB mentions are attributed to patients age 25
and younger.  More than half of the mentions of GHB, Ketamine, MDMA, and
Rohypnol in emergency department visits were associated with recreational
drug use and more than half were associated with visits for unexpected
reactions or overdose.

Unlike methamphetamine/speed, which is concentrated in western metropolitan
areas, other club drugs are somewhat more geographically dispersed.  In 2000
the highest rates of emergency department visits of GHB per 100,000
population appear in San Francisco (9 per 100,000 population), Dallas (7),
and New Orleans (6).  Rates of MDMA mentions appear highest in San Francisco
(7), Seattle (7), and Miami (5).  The highest rates of LSD mentions appear in
Phoenix (7) and Seattle (5).

Prescription Drugs  

>From 1999 to 2000 emergency department mentions of prescription drugs
containing oxycodone increased 68 percent (from 6,429 to 10,825), and
mentions of drugs containing hydrocodone increased 31 percent (from 14,639 to
19,221). Mentions of oxycodone and hydrocodone increased 108 percent and 53
percent respectively, in the 2-year period from 1998 to 2000.  DAWN estimates
for these narcotic analgesics (pain killers) should not be attributed to
drugs marketed under particular trade or brand names.  For example, the DAWN
estimates for oxycodone cannot be attributed to OxyContin, Percocet,
Percodan, or any other particular brand of analgesic containing oxycodone.

Total Drug-Related Visits  

DAWN is a nationally representative survey of hospitals with emergency
departments conducted annually by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).  In 2000, 466 hospitals participated
in DAWN.  The survey is designed to capture information about emergency
department visits that are induced by or related to the use of an illegal
drug or the nonmedical use of a legal drug.  Because up to 4 drugs can be
reported for each emergency department visit, there are more "mentions" than
"visits".

In 2000, there were an estimated 601,776 drug-related emergency department
visits in the continental United States with 1,100,539 mentions of a
particular drug (on average, 1.8 drugs per visit).  There was no
statistically significant change between 1999 and 2000 in the number of
emergency department visits or the number of drugs mentioned.

Among drug-related emergency department visits in 2000, dependence (217,224,
or 36 percent of visits) and suicide (193,061, or 32 percent) were the most
frequently cited motives for taking the substances.   Overdose (264,240 or 44
percent of visits) was the most common reason given for contacting the
emergency department.  Between 1999 and 2000, emergency department visits
involving patients seeking detoxification increased 24 percent (from 72,960
to 90,625) and visits involving overdose increased 14 percent (from 232,283
to 264,240).

>From 1999 to 2000, total drug related emergency department visits increased
20 percent for patients age 12 to 17 (from 52,783 to 63,448) and 13 percent
for patients age 18 to 25 (from 109,580 to 123,438), but remained stable for
older age groups.  Total drug-related emergency department visits involving
females increased 9 percent (from 258,079 to 281,994) between 1999 and 2000,
but were statistically unchanged for males.  From 1999 to 2000 visits
involving Hispanic patients increased 20 percent (from 56,891 to 68,282). 
There were no significant changes for visits involving other racial/ethnic
subgroups.

The DAWN report is available on the SAMHSA website at http://www.samhsa.gov .
 Click on highlights.  Or, by calling SAMHSA's National Clearinghouse for
Drug and Alcohol Information at 1-800-729-2600.

SAMHSA, a public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, is the lead federal agency for improving the quality and
availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment and mental
health services in the United States.  Information on SAMHSA's programs is
available on the Internet at http://www.samhsa.gov .  News media requests
should be directed to Media Services at 800-487-4890.

Sign up for SAMHSA's mailing list for the DAWN and other reports at
http://www.samhsa.gov .

MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT -  Click Here  

http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X72541633 

SOURCE  Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration  

CO:  Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; U.S.     
Department of Health

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