Highlights of Recent Reports on Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Released in 2006
 All
reports by year of release
All
reports released in 2006 (listed
from most recent to earliest release):
-
The
NSDUH Report: Service Utilization for Mental Health Problems
among Adults
SAMHSA's National Surveys on Drug Use and Health in 2003 through
2005 were combined to assess the receipt of treatment for mental health
problems, the perceived unmet need for such treatment, and the reasons
for not receiving treatment for mental health problems among those with
an unmet need for treatment. Among adults aged 18 or older, 13% (27.9
million persons) received treatment or counseling for mental health
problems in the past 12 months. About 5.1% of all adults and 19.2% of
adults who received treatment for mental health problems in the past
year perceived an unmet need for treatment or counseling for mental
health problems in the past year. Of those adults who perceived an unmet
need for treatment for mental health problems in the past year, 48.1%
reported cost or insurance issues as a barrier to treatment receipt.
- The
DASIS Report: Facilities
Operating Opioid Treatment Programs, 2005
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration (SAMHSA) certifies Opioid Treatment Programs
that provide medication-assisted therapy to treat addiction to opiates
such as heroin, oxycodone, or hydrocodone. Currently, methadone and
buprenorphine are the only opioid medications approved for treating
opioid addiction. Of the 13,371
facilities responding to SAMHSA's 2005 National Survey of Substance
Abuse Treatment Services, 8% (1,069) operated an Opioid Treatment Program
certified by SAMHSA. About
two thirds (67%) of all facilities operating Opioid Treatment Programs
served opioid treatment program clients exclusively; these facilities
accounted for 81% of all Opioid Treatment Program clients in 2005. Among
the Opioid Treatment Program (OTP) clients in methadone treatment on
March 31, 2005, 47% were in OTPs operated by private for-profit organizations,
40% in OTPs operated by private non-profit organizations, and 13% in
government operated OTPs. Opioid Treatment Programs operated
by private non-profit organizations were more likely to accept Medicaid
payments (88%) than facilities operated by governmental organizations
(64%) or private for-profit organizations (43%).
- The
NSDUH Report: Substance Use Disorder and Serious Psychological
Distress by Employment Status
Among full time employed adults aged 18 to 64 in SAMHSA's
National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 10.6% were classified as having
a past year substance use disorder, 10.2% experienced serious psychological
distress during the past year, and 2.4% had co-occurring serious psychological
distress and a substance use disorder. Full time employed
males in this age group were nearly twice as likely to have a past year
substance use disorder than their female counterparts (13.2% vs. 6.9%).
In contrast, females were nearly twice as likely to have
experienced serious psychological distress during the past year than
were the males (14.2% vs. 7.3%). Of the 2.9 million adults aged 18 to
64 employed full time who had co-occurring serious psychological distress
and a substance use disorder, nearly 60% were not treated for either
problem and less than 5% were treated for both problems.
- The
NSDUH Report: How
Young Adults Obtain Prescription Pain Relievers for Nonmedical Use SAMHSA's
National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 4 million young adults
aged 18 to 25 (12.4%) used prescription pain relievers (analgesics)
such as OxyContin® nonmedically within the past year in 2005. In
addition, 1.7% of the young adults met the criteria for dependence or
abuse of prescription pain relievers in the past year. This report presents
data on the source of these prescription pain relievers that were used
nonmedically by young adults. The
past year young adult nonmedical users pain relievers who met the criteria
for prescription pain reliever dependence or abuse obtained their most
recently used pain relievers from the following sources: 37.5% obtained
them for free from a friend or relative, 19.9% bought them from a friend
or relative, and 13.0% obtained them from one doctor.
- The
New DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits Involving Dextromethorphan
Dextromethorphan
(DXM) is approved by the Food and Drug Administration and is a cough
suppressant found in many over-the-counter cough and cold remedies.
Dextromethorphan is generally safe when taken in recommended doses but
in large amounts can cause dangerous side effects. According to SAMHSA's
Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) for 2004, an estimated 12,584 emergency
department visits (0.7% of all drug related emergency department visits)
involved pharmaceuticals containing dextromethorphan. Emergency
department patients aged 12 to 20 accounted for almost half (48%) of
all the emergency department visits resulting from nonmedical use of
dextromethorphan. The rates of DAWN emergency department visits resulting
from any type of use of dextromethorphan among those aged 12 to 20 was
10.3 per 100,000 population compared with 4.3 visits per 100,000 for
the population overall. Alcohol was implicated in about a third (36%)
of the DAWN emergency department visits involving
nonmedical use of dextromethorphan
for those aged 18 to 20 and in 13% of visits for those aged 12 to 17.
- The
NSDUH Report: Underage Alcohol Use among Full-Time College
Students
SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use & Health examined trends and
patterns in the rates of alcohol use by full time college students aged
18 to 20 and found that the rates of past month, binge, and heavy alcohol
use remained steady from 2002 to 2005. Binge drinking was defined as
5 or more drinks on the same occasion at least one day in the past month.
Based on combined data from the 2002 to 2005 National Surveys on Drug
Use & Health, 57.8% of full time college students underage for legal
drinking used alcohol in the past month, 40.1% engaged in binge drinking,
and 16.6% engaged in heavy drinking.
Males were more likely than females to have used alcohol in the past
month (60.4% vs. 55.6%), binge drank (46.9% vs. 34.4%), or drank heavily
(22.7% vs. 11.5%).
- The
DASIS Report: Facilities Offering Special Programs or Groups
for Women
Of the 13,317 treatment facilities that responded to SAMHSA's 2005 National
Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS), 13% did not
accept women as clients. Those substance abuse treatment facilities
that did were more likely to be larger facilities. Of the 11,578 substance
abuse treatment facilities that accepted women as clients, 41% provided
special programs or groups for women: 24% for adult women only, 3% for
pregnant or postpartum women only, and 14% for adult women and/or pregnant
or postpartum women. Facilities
offering special programs or groups for women were more likely to provide
a variety of additional treatment services than facilities that did
not offer women programs or groups. Such additional services included
relapse prevention groups (91% vs. 74%), aftercare counseling (84% vs.
78%), and family counseling (81% vs. 74%). Facilities
providing special programs or groups for women were also more likely
to offer programs for other types of clients than facilities that did
not provide women programs or services. Special programs or groups were
offered for men (63% vs. 3%), adolescents (78% vs. 48%), persons with
co-occurring disorders (56% vs. 31%), persons with HIV/AIDS (23% vs.
4%), and senior citizens (16% vs. 3%).
- National
Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services: 2005
SAMHSA's Office of Applied Studies (OAS) conducts the National Survey
of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS), an annual census of
facilities providing substance abuse treatment. This survey is designed
to collect data on the location, characteristics, and use of alcoholism
and drug abuse treatment facilities and services throughout the 50 States,
the District of Columbia, and other U.S. jurisdictions. The reference
date for the 2005 one-day census was March 31.
The number of reporting facilities remained relatively constant between
2000 and 2005. There were 13,428 reporting facilities in 200 and 13,371
facilities in 2005. The number of clients in treatment on the survey
reference date increased by 8% over the same period from 1,000,896 in
2000 to 1,081,049 in 2005.
Most of the substance abuse treatment facilities were operated by private
non-profit organizations. In 2005, 61% were private nonprofit organizations,
27% were private for-profit organizations, 8% were operated by local
governments, 3% by State governments, 2% by the Federal government,
and 1% by tribal governments.
- The
NSDUH Report: State Estimates of Past Year Methamphetamine
Use
In 2002-2005, an estimated 1.4 million persons (0.6% of the population)
aged 12 or older used methamphetamine in the past year. Rates of past
year methamphetamine use were highest in Nevada (2%), Montana (1.5%),and
Wyoming (1.5%). The lowest rate of past year methamphetamine use was
about 0.1% and was found in Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New
Jersey, and New York. For
youths aged 12 to 17, rates of past year methamphetamine use were among
the highest in South Dakota (2.3%), Montana (2.2%), North Dakota (1.6%)
and Wyoming (1.6%). Methamphetamine use was the lowest among youth in
the District of Columbia (0.1%), New York (0.2%), and Maryland (0.2%).
Young
adults aged 18 to 25 were the most likely to use methamphetamines in
the past year. For adults aged 18 to 25, rates of past year methamphetamine
use were among the highest in Wyoming (4.6%), Arkansas (4.4%), Minnesota
(3.8%) and Nevada (3.8%). Methamphetamine use was the lowest among young
adults in New York (0.3%), Connecticut (0.4%), and Vermont (0.4%).
- The
New DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits Involving ADHD
Stimulant Medications According
to SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) for 2004, an estimated
7,873 drug-related emergency department visits involved methylphenidate
or amphetamine-dextroamphetamine, two medications used to treat attention
deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The most frequent reason for
these ADHD stimulant medication related visits was nonmedical use (48%),
followed by adverse reactions associated with medical use (34%), accidental
ingestion (10%), and suicide attempts (8%). The rates of DAWN emergency
department visits involving methylphenidate or amphetamine-dextroamphetamine
for patients aged 12 to 17 were higher than the rates for patients aged
18 or older. About 68% of the DAWN emergency department visits involving
nonmedical
use of methylphenidate or amphetamine-dextroamphetamine also involved
another substance (such as alcohol, an illicit drug, or a pharmaceutical).
- The
OAS Report: Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempts, Major
Depressive Episode & Substance Use among Adults
Data on suicide
attempts and related behaviors are available from SAMHSA's National
Survey on Drug Use and Health and SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network
(DAWN).
Among adults who experienced a major depressive episode in the past
year, 56.3% thought during their worst or most recent episode that it
would be better if they were dead, 40.3% thought about committing suicide,
14.5% made a suicide plan, and 10.4% made a suicide attempt. Adults with a past year major depressive
episode who reported past month binge alcohol or illicit drug use were
more likely to report suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts than their
counterparts with past year depression who did not binge drink
or use an illicit drug in the past month. In
2004, an estimated 106,079 emergency department visits were the result
of drug-related suicide attempts by persons aged 18 or older. A
psychiatric condition was diagnosed in 41% (43,176) of the drug-related
suicide attempts treated in the emergency departments. The
most frequent psychiatric diagnosis was depression.
- Treatment
Episode Data Set (TEDS) 1994-2004 (PDF
format) Nationally, between 1994 and
2004, the
alcohol admission rate declined by 28% and the cocaine admission rate
declined by 28%. However, the admission rates increased
for the following drugs: the methamphetamine rate increased by 182%,
the marijuana admission rate increased by 74%, the heroin admission
rate increased by 2%, and the admission rate for opiates other than
heroin increased by 257%.
- 2005
National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings
In 2005, 19.7 million (8.1%) used an
illicit drug, 71.5 million (29.4%) used a tobacco product, and 126 million
(51.8%) Americans aged 12 and older used alcohol currently (that is,
in the month prior to the survey). The rate of current marijuana
use among youths aged 12 to 17 declined from 7.6% to 6.8% between 2004
and 2005. Although the number of current methamphetamine users
has remained steady since 2002, the number who were dependent on or
abused some illicit drug rose significantly from 164,000 to 257,000
between 2002 and 2005. Rates of current tobacco use remained unchanged
between 2004 and 2005 but declined between 2002 and 2005 from 30.4%
to 29.4%. Current binge drinking among youths declined from 11.1%
to 9.9% between 2004 and 2005. Total underage current drinking
(aged 12-20), however, remained essentially unchanged since 2002.
Among youth, the perceived availability of drugs decreased between 2002
and 2005 for marijuana, crack, heroin, and LSD but there was no decrease
in the perceived availability of cocaine.
- The
DASIS Report: Methamphetamine / Amphetamine Treatment Admissions
in Urban and Rural Areas, 2004
Among all methamphetamine/ amphetamine admissions
for which treatment location was known in SAMHSA's 2004 Treatment Episode
Data Set (TEDS), 33% were treated in large central metro areas, 21%
in large fringe metro areas, 31% in small metro areas, 9% in non metro
areas with a city, and 6% in nonmetro areas without a city (rural).
The route of administration differed by rural/urban status: the percentage
of methamphetamine/ amphetamine admissions that smoked the drugs was
highest in the most urbanized counties (62%) and lowest in the most
rural counties (48%). The percentage of methamphetamine/ amphetamine
admissions that injected the drugs was lowest in large metro areas (14%
to 15%) and highest in small and nonmetro areas (24% to 25%). Among
all substance abuse treatment admissions for methamphetamine/ amphetamine
abuse, the percentage aged 18 to 25 years older was lowest in the most
urbanized counties and highest in the most rural counties (26% vs. 32%).
- The
NSDUH Report: Alcohol Dependence or Abuse in Substate
Areas (State treatment planning areas):
By combining three years of data from
SAMHSA's National Surveys on Drug Use and Health from 2002 to 2004,
SAMHSA's Office of Applied Studies was able to produce estimates of
alcohol dependence or abuse for subState areas.
These subState areas may be regions, counties, or other geographic areas that
each State has identified as their State treatment planning areas, that
is, areas for the purpose of allocating the substance abuse treatment
block grant funds from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA).
In 2002 to 2004, past month alcohol dependence or abuse varied from
a low of 5.4% in Southern Utah and in North Central Florida to a high
of 13.5% in South Central Wyoming.
- The
DASIS Report: Discharges Who Left Against Professional Advice,
2003:
Of the discharges for substance abuse treatment reported to SAMHSA's
2003 Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) with known reason for discharge,
28% (226,000) left against professional advice and 44% (361,000) completed
treatment. Others were terminated by the facility (9%), transferred
to another substance abuse treatment program/facility (11%), or were
discharged for other reasons (8%). Discharges who left against professional
advice were more likely than those who completed treatment to
have reported opiates (25% vs. 17%) and less likely to have
reported alcohol (35% vs. 47%) as their primary substance of abuse.
In terms of treatment
modality, discharges who left against professional advice were more
likely than those who completed treatment to have been in outpatient
treatment (52% vs. 46%) or methadone treatment (9% vs. 2%) and
less likely to have been in detoxification (25% vs. 30%) or residential
treatment (14% vs. 20%). Discharges who completed substance abuse treatment
were more likely than those who left against professional advice
to have been referred to treatment by the criminal justice system (39%
vs. 29%) and less likely and to have been self or individually
referred to treatment (34% vs. 40%).
-
The NSDUH Report: Past Month Cigarette Use Among Racial and
Ethnic Groups:
Data from SAMHSA's 2002-2004 National Surveys on Drug Use & Health
were pooled to examine rates of cigarette smoking among various racial
and ethnic groups. Rates of past month cigarette smoking among persons
aged 12 or older were highest among American Indians or Alaska Natives
(34.8%) and persons of two or more races (34.6%). Past month cigarette
smoking was lowest among Asians (13.4%). Among Asians, the rate of past
month cigarette smoking was highest among Koreans (24.9%) and lowest
among Chinese (7.5%). Among Hispanic past month smokers, Puerto Ricans
and Cubans were more likely to report daily cigarette smoking than Central
or South Americans or Mexicans.
-
The DASIS Report: Homeless Admissions to Substance Abuse
Treatment: 2004:
According to SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), more than 175,300
admissions to substance abuse treatment in 2004 were homeless at time
of admission. These admissions who were homeless comprised 13%
of all admissions for which living arrangements were recorded; an increase
from 10% TEDS admissions reported to be homeless in 2000. Almost half
of the homeless admissions in substance abuse treatment (47%) were white.
Alcohol was the primary substance of abuse for more than half of the
admissions who were homeless (52%), followed by opiates (21%), and cocaine
(17%).
The largest difference in primary substance of abuse between homeless
admissions and those who were not homeless was found among American
Indians/Alaska Natives. A greater proportion of American Indians/Alaska
Natives admissions who were homeless reported alcohol abuse than American
Indians/Alaska Natives who were not homeless (78% vs. 58%). Homeless
admissions were more likely than admissions who were not homeless to
refer themselves for treatment (48% vs. 33%) and were over twice as
likely to have had five or more prior admissions to substance abuse
treatment (21% vs. 9%).
- The New
DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits Involving Nonmedical
Use of Selected Pharmaceuticals:
According to SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN), nearly 1.3
million emergency department (ED) visits in 2004 were associated with
drug misuse/abuse. Nonmedical use of pharmaceuticals was involved in
nearly 500,000 of these ED visits. Opiates/opioid analgesics (pain killers)
and benzodiazepines were each present in more than 100,000 emergency
department visits associated with nonmedical use of pharmaceuticals.
Two thirds or more of emergency department visits associated with opiates/opioids,
benzodiazepines, and muscle relaxants involved multiple drugs. Alcohol
was one of the other drugs in about as quarter of such emergency department
visits.
- The
NSDUH Report: Substance Use Treatment Need among Adolescents,
2003-2004:
Combining data from the 2003-2004 SAMHSA's National Surveys on Drug
Use and Health, SAMHSA's Office of Applied Studies was able to describe
the demographic characteristics of youth who needed substance abuse
treatment, those who perceived a need for substance abuse treatment,
those who received treatment, and the treatment gap. The treatment gap
is the unmet need for substance abuse treatment. Based on SAMHSA's National
Survey on Drug Use and Health, 1.5 million youths (6.1% youths aged
12 to 17) were classified as needing alcohol treatment in the past year
and about 111,000 youth (7.2% of those needing alcohol treatment) received
specialty treatment for alcohol in the past year. Specialty substance
use treatment is defined as inpatient or outpatient treatment received
at drug or alcohol rehabilitation facilities or mental health centers,
or inpatient hospital treatment. About 1.4 million youths (5.4%) were
classified as needing illicit drug use treatment in the past year and
124,000 (9.1% of those needing illicit drug treatment) received specialty
treatment for an illicit drug in the past year. Youths aged 12 to 17
who were in need of substance use treatment in the past year and did
not receive treatment were not likely to perceive a need for substance
use treatment.
-
The NSDUH Report: Nonmedical Users of Pain Relievers,
Characteristics of Recent Initiates
SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 2.4 million
persons aged 12 and older initiated nonmedical use of prescription pain
relievers (analgesics) such as OxyContin® within the past year in 2004.
Among persons who initiated nonmedical use of pain relievers in the
past year, 48.0% used Vicodin®, Lortab®, or Lorcet® nonmedically; 34.3%
had used Darvocet®, Darvon®, or Tylenol® with codeine nonmedically;
and 20.0% had used Percocet®, Percodan®, or Tylox® nonmedically. Of
the past year new users of nonmedical pain relievers, 73.8% had used
another illicit drug prior to using pain relievers nonmedically. In
2004, about 615,000 persons began using OxyContin® nonmedically. Nearly
all (99.1%) of the persons who first used OxyContin® nonmedically in
the past year had used another illicit drug prior to using OxyContin®
nonmedically.
-
The DASIS Report: Characteristics
of Young Adult (Aged 18-25) and Youth (Aged 12-17) Admissions, 2004
Based on SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), young adults aged
18 to 25 accounted for 21% and youth aged 12 to 17 accounted for 8%
of the 1.9 million admissions to substance abuse treatment reported
to TEDS in 2004. Young adults aged 18-25 were less likely than
youths aged 12-17 to be admitted with marijuana as their primary substance
of abuse (27% vs. 64%). The criminal justice system was the
principal source of referral to treatment for 47% of young adult admissions
compared to 52% of youth admissions to substance abuse treatment.
About 48% of all TEDS substance abuse treatment admissions in 2004 were
in the 28 States that provided data on a psychiatric problem in addition
to an alcohol or drug problem for their treatment admissions. Based
on this TEDS supplemental data set, 17% of young adults had a psychiatric
problem in addition to substance abuse compared with 20% of the youth
admissions for substance abuse treatment.
-
The NSDUH Report: How
and Where Young Adults Obtain Marijuana
Based on SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health combined data
from 2002 to 2004, most of the young adults aged 18 to 25 who had used
marijuana in the past year obtained their most recently used marijuana
from a friend either free or by purchase. Among young adults who had
used marijuana in the past year, 58.3% obtained their most recently
used marijuana for free or shared someone else's and 40.0% bought their
marijuana. Young adults who were daily marijuana users were more likely
than nondaily marijuana users to have bought their most recently used
marijuana (75.3% vs. 33.8%). Young adult users of marijuana in the past
year who used marijuana daily were more likely than nondaily marijuana
users to have gotten their most recently used marijuana inside a home,
apartment, or dorm room and less likely to have gotten their marijuana
from inside a public building or outside in a public area.
-
The DAWN Report: Opiate-Related Drug Misuse Deaths in
6 States, 2003
SAMHSA's Drug Abuse
Warning Network (DAWN) collects data on all deaths where drugs played
a role, either directly (e.g., overdose) or indirectly (e.g., fatal
car crash where drugs were involved). Drug misuse death is defined as
a drug-related death caused by overmedication, all other accidental
causes, homicide by drugs, and drug-related deaths where the cause could
not be determined.
Six States participate in the mortality component of the Drug Abuse
Warning Network: Maine, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Utah, and
Vermont. The rates of opiate-related drug misuse deaths in 2003 ranged
from 7.2 per 100,000 population in New Hampshire to 11.6 per 100,000
population in New Mexico. In each of these 6 States, most opiate-related
drug misuse deaths involved multiple drugs.
Three opiate pain medications as a group (oxycodone, hydrocodone, and
methadone) were involved in 40% or more of the opiate misuse deaths
in these States. The involvement of oxycodone ranged from 13% in New
Mexico to 30% in Vermont; hydrocodone ranged from 3% in Maryland to
17% in Utah; and methadone ranged from 17% in New Mexico to 46% in Maine.
-
The NSDUH Report:
Academic Performance and Substance Use among Students Aged 12 to 17
(2002, 2003, & 2004) Based on SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use & Health, 70.4% of
students aged 12 to 17 reported that they had an A or B grade average
in their last semester or grading period, while 29.6% had a C average
or less. Younger students were more likely to report good grades than
older students; for example, 75.6% of students aged 12 or 13 reported
an A or B average compared with 68.3% of students aged 16 or 17. Students
who did not use alcohol in the past month (72.5%) were more likely to
have an A or B grade average than those drank alcohol but did not binge
(67.1%) or those who binge drank alcohol in the past month (57.7%).
Students who did not use marijuana in the past month (72.2%) were more
likely to have an A or B grade average than those who used marijuana
on 1 to 4 days in the past month (58.0%) or those using marijuana on
5 or more days in the past month (44.9%).
-
Drug
Abuse Warning Network, 2004: National Estimates of Drug-Related Emergency
Department Visits.
Based on SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN), of the 1.3 million
drug-related visits to Emergency Departments in 2004 that were associated
with drug misuse or abuse, 30% involved illicit drugs only, 25% involved
pharmaceuticals only, 15% involved illicit drugs and alcohol, 8% involved
illicit drugs with pharmaceuticals, and 14% involved illicit drugs with
pharmaceuticals and alcohol.
-
The DASIS Report: Older Adult Alcohol Admissions, 2003Among older adult admissions to substance abuse treatment reported to
SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), about half (48%) were admitted
for abuse of alcohol only. Older adult alcohol-only admissions were
less likely than other older adult admissions to be self/individual
referrals (37% vs. 45%). Among older adult admissions alcohol-only admissions
were more likely than other admissions to have entered treatment for
the first time (45% vs. 33%).
-
The NSDUH Report: Alcohol Dependence or Abuse: 2002, 2003, and 2004
Based on analysis of combined data from SAMHSA's 2002-2004 National
Surveys on Drug Use & Health, 7.6% (18.2 million) persons aged 12
or older met the criteria for alcohol dependence or abuse in the past
year. Alcohol abuse or dependence was more prevalent among adults aged
18 or older who were never married (16%) than adults who were divorced
or separated (4.6%) or widowed (1.3%. Persons aged 12 or older who were
dependent on or abused alcohol in the past year were more likely to
have been treated in an emergency room at least once in the past year
than those who did not meet alcohol dependence or abuse criteria (34.2%
vs. 27.9%).
-
Discharges from Substance Abuse Treatment Services: Treatment
Episode Data Set (TEDS),
2003 (PDF)
Provides latest
data on treatment completion rates by type of substance abuse care
(inpatient, outpatient, hospital, methadone maintenance, etc.)
Among the 888,432 discharges from substance abuse treatment reported
to SAMHSA's TEDS system, 42% were from outpatient treatment, 23% from
detoxification, 12% were from intensive outpatient treatment, 8% from
long-term residential treatment, 8% from short term residential treatment,
5% from methadone treatment and 1% from hospital residential treatment.
Overall, treatment was completed by 41% of the substance abuse treatment
discharges. The treatment completion rate was highest from short term
treatment programs (69% of the discharges from hospital residential
treatment completed treatment, 64% from short term residential, and
55% from detoxification). The treatment completion rate was 41% for
long term residential treatment and 38% for outpatient treatment.
-
The
New DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits Involving Patients
with Co-occurring Disorders
During 2004, an estimated 192,690 patients in drug-related emergency
department visits were diagnosed with co-occurring substance use and
mental disorders. When emergency department visits involved co-occurring
disorders, 40.4% were treated and released home or referred to detoxification
or other drug treatment and 42.2% were admitted to inpatient units including
chemical dependency or detoxification units. Of the emergency
department visits with co-occurring diagnosis, the drug most frequently
reported were cocaine (31.8%), alcohol (29.3%), opiates/opioids (18.0%),
and marijuana (16.3%).
-
The DASIS Report: Non-Heroin Opiate Admissions,
2003
Opiates were the primary substance of abuse for 324,000 (18%) of the
1.8 million substance abuse treatment admissions reported to SAMHSA's
Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) in 2003. Of these, 51,000 (3% of all
admissions) were for a non-heroin opiate. Non-heroin opiates include
methadone, codeine, Dilaudid, morphine, Demerol, opium, oxycodone, and
any other drug with morphine-like effects. Non-heroin opiate admissions
(40%) were more likely than heroin admissions (22%) to be entering treatment
for the first time. Non-heroin opiate admissions were less likely
than heroin admissions to report cocaine as their secondary substance
of abuse (17% vs. 50%) and more likely than heroin admissions
to report marijuana as their secondary substance of abuse (19% vs. 10%).
-
The NSDUH
Report: State Estimates of Underage Drinking This report on underaged drinking (by persons aged 12 to 20) is based
on State level data combined from 2 years of data, i.e. from SAMHSA's
2003 and 2004 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health. Data are annualized
estimates, that is, an average per year estimate is calculated from
the combined data years. In 2003-2004, past month alcohol use rates
for persons aged 12 to 20 were among the lowest in Utah (18.6%) and
Tennessee (22.3%) and among the highest in North Dakota (42.7%) and
South Dakota (39.1%). Between 2002-2003 and 2003-2004, past month alcohol
use increased in California (from 24.7 to 26.3%) and Wisconsin
(from 34.7% to 38.3%) while binge alcohol drinking increased in
Iowa (from 24.7% to 27.7%) and Oklahoma (from 19.1% to 21.5%). Past
month alcohol drinking decreased between 2002-2003 and 2003-2004
in South Carolina (from 27.2% to 24.1%) and Michigan (from 31.8% to
30.2%); while binge alcohol drinking decreased in South Carolina
and North Carolina (both from 18.0% to 15.9%) and in Tennessee (from
15.9% to 13.1%).
- The
DASIS Report: Trends in Substance Abuse Treatment Admissions,
1993 & 2003
Between 1993 and 2003, the number of substance abuse treatment admissions
increased from 1.62 million to 1.84 million treatment admissions. This
increase in substance abuse treatment admissions was almost 14%.
The proportion of admissions also increased between 1993 and
2003 for those reporting as their primary substance of abuse: marijuana
(increased from 7% in 1993 to 16% in 2003), opiates (increased from
13% to 18%), or stimulants (increased from 2% to 7%). The proportion
of admissions decreased during this decade for those reporting
alcohol (57% to 41%) or cocaine (17% to 14%) as their primary substance
of abuse.
Substance abuse treatment admissions that were aged 25 to 34 decreased
from 40% of admissions in 1993 to 25% of treatment admissions in 2003.
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The New DAWN
Report: Disposition of Emergency Department Visits for Drug-Related
Suicide Attempts by Adolescents, 2004
According to SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN), in 2004
there were over 15,000 emergency department visits by adolescents aged
12 to 17 whose suicide attempts involved drugs. Pain
medications were involved in about half of the suicide attempts.
Almost three quarters of the drug related suicide attempts were serious
enough to merit the patient's admission to the same hospital or transfer
to another health care facility. Antidepressants or other psychotherapeutic
medications were involved in over 40% of the suicide attempts by adolescents
who were admitted to the hospital.
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The
NSDUH Report: Characteristics
of Recent Adolescent Inhalant Initiates
In SAMHSA's 2002 to 2004 National Surveys on Drug Use & Health,
an average of 598,000 youths aged 12 to 17 per year reported that they
initiated inhalant use in the 12 months prior to being surveyed. The
types of inhalants most frequently mentioned as having been used by
recent initiates were: glue, shoe polish, or toluene (30.3%), gasoline
or lighter fluid (24.9%), nitrous oxide or "whippets" (24.9%),
and spray paints (23.4%). Among recent inhalants initiates, 19.4% used
inhalants on 13 or more days in the past year. In 2002 to 2004, 59.7%
of recent inhalant initiates aged 12 to 17 had used cigarettes prior
to using inhalants, 67.6% had previously used alcohol, 42.4% had previously
used marijuana, and 35.9% had used all three substances (cigarettes,
alcohol, and marijuana) before they used inhalants.
- The
NSDUH Report: Sources of Payment for Substance Use Treatment
Based on SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an
estimated 43.9% of individuals who received alcohol or illicit drug
use treatment in the past year paid at least a portion of the cost of
their last or current treatment with their own savings or earnings.
The majority (52.9%) of the individuals who received substance use treatment
in the past year used two or more sources of payment for their last
or current services. Among persons who received alcohol or illicit drug
use treatment in the past year, females were more likely than males
to have paid at least a portion of the costs for their last or current
services with private insurance (30.9% vs. 23.5%), Medicaid (19.8% vs.
11.6%), and other public assistance (21.0% vs. 13.6%).
- The
DASIS Report: Trends in Methamphetamine / Amphetamine Admissions
to Treatment, 1993-2003
According to SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), 47 of the 50
States distinguish between methamphetamines and amphetamines as primary
substances of abuse in their reporting to TEDS. In these 47 States,
methamphetamine was the primary drug in 86% of the combined methamphetamine/
amphetamine treatment admissions in 2003. Arkansas, Oregon, and Texas
do not distinguish between amphetamine and methamphetamine in their
reporting of primary substance of abuse in treatment admissions. Nationally,
the rate of substance abuse treatment admissions for primary methamphetamine
/amphetamine abuse increased between 1993 to 2003 from 13 per 100,000
to 56 admissions per 100,000 population aged 12 or older. In 2003, 18
States had rates in excess of the national rate (56 admissions per 100,000
population): 10 States were in the West, 6 were in the Midwest and 2
were in the South and none were in the Northeast. The highest rates
were in Oregon (251 admissions per 100,000), Hawaii (241 per 100,000),
Iowa (213 per 100,000), California (212 per 100,000), Wyoming (209 per
100,000), Utah (186 per 100,000), Nevada (176 per 100,000), Washington
State (143 per 100,000), Montana (133 per 100,000), Arkansas (130 admissions
per 100,000 population), Nebraska (118 per 100,000), and Oklahoma (117
per 100,000). All the rates for the States in the Northeast were 5 or
less per 100,000 population.
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The NSDUH
Report: Substance Use and Employment among Youths Aged 15 to
17
Based on SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated
33.7% of youths aged 15 to 17 were employed either part or full-time
during the past week. Employed youths were more likely than youths who
were not employed to have used alcohol (35.9% vs. 24.4%), to have engaged
in binge alcohol use (24.6% vs. 15.2%), and to have used an illicit
drug (19.4% vs. 15.6%) during the past month. Youths working 20 or more
hours per week were more likely than those working 19 or fewer hours
per week to have drunk alcohol (41.1% vs. 33.8%), to have binged on
alcohol (29.0% vs. 23.1%), and to have used any illicit drug (22.3%
vs. 18.5%) during the past month.
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The DASIS Report: Retired Admissions, 2003 Based on SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) among the 29 States
that reported retirement status in 2003, about twice as many substance
abuse treatment admissions among retired persons (80%) than other admissions
(44%) reported alcohol as the primary substance of abuse. Only 17% of
substance abuse treatment admissions among retired persons reported
a secondary substance of abuse compared to 52% of other admissions.
Substance abuse treatment admissions who were retired persons were more
likely to have some form of health insurance than other admissions (60%
vs. 42%).
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The NSDUH Report: Youth Violence and Illicit
Drug Use
Based on SAMHSA's National
Survey on Drug Use & Health, youths aged 12 to 17 who used an illicit
drug in the past year were almost twice as likely to have engaged in
a violent behavior as those who did not use an illicit drug (49.8% vs.
26.6%). Rates of past year violent behavior were higher among youths
aged 13, 14, and 15 than those either younger or older. The likelihood
of having engaged in violent behavior increased with the number of drugs
used in the past year: 45.6% of youths who used one illicit drug engaged
in violent behavior compared to 61.9% of youths who used three or more
illicit drugs.
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The
DASIS Report: Age of First Use among Admissions for Drugs: 1993
& 2003 Based on SAMHSA's Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), the average
age of first illicit drug use among admissions for substance abuse treatment
changed between 1993 and 2003.
The average age of first use of any illicit drug among substance abuse
treatment admissions showed a slight decrease from age 18.8 in 1993
to age 18.6 in 2003. Among substance abuse treatment admissions whose
earliest reported drug of abuse at admission was stimulants, opiates,
or cocaine, the average age of first use rose between 1993 and
2003 (for stimulants from age 18.5 to age 19.7; for opiates from age
21.0 to age 22.1; and for cocaine from age 22.5 to age 22.7).
For marijuana, however, it decreased. The average age of first use among
substance abuse treatment admissions whose earliest reported drug of
abuse was marijuana decreased from age 15.1 in 1993 to age 14.6
in 2003. While the average age of first use of any drug remained
the same or decreased between 1993 and 2003 for all age groups, the
percentage of substance abuse treatment admissions starting drug
use before age 13 increased for all age groups except those age
18-24 at treatment admission. Criminal justice was the only admissions
referral source that had a decrease in the average age of first use
of any illicit drug. The average age of first use of any illicit drug
for admissions referred by the criminal justice system decreased from
age 17.6 in 1993 to age 16.8 in 2003.
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The NSDUH Report: Serious Psychological
Distress and Substance Use among Young Adult Males SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health in 2002 through 2004
assessed whether respondents met criteria for serious psychological
distress during the month in the past year when respondents were at
their worst emotionally. An estimated 10.3% of males aged 18 to 25 (1.6
million persons) experienced serious psychological distress during the
past year. Divorced or separated males aged 18 to 25 (20.9%) were more
likely to have experienced serious psychological distress during the
past year than those who were married (7.3%) or never married (10.5%).
Males aged 18 to 25 with serious psychological distress during the past
year were more likely than those without past year serious psychological
distress to have engaged in heavy alcohol use (27.2% vs. 20.7%), binge
alcohol use (56.7% vs. 49.9%), and illicit drug use (35.6% vs. 22.1%)
in the past month.
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The DASIS Report:
Facilities
Offering Special Programs or Groups for Clients with Co-Occurring Disorders,
2004
Of the 13,454 facilities that responded to SAMHSA's National Survey
of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS), 4756 facilities (35%)
had special programs or groups for clients with co-occurring psychiatric
and substance use disorders in 2004.
Facilities operated by State governments were most likely to offer special
programs or groups for clients with co-occurring substance abuse and
psychiatric disorders (50%), followed by those operated by local governments
(44%), the Federal government (41%) and private nonprofit organizations
(36%).
Facilities operated by private-for-profit organizations (31%) and Tribal
governments (29%) were least likely to offer special programs or groups
for clients with co-occurring substance abuse and psychiatric disorders.
Facilities with special programs or groups for clients with co-occurring
substance abuse and psychiatric disorders were more likely than those
not offering such special programs or groups to offer a number of services,
including family counseling (83% vs. 73%), Hepatitis B testing (30%
vs. 19%), transitional social services (65% vs. 49%), domestic violence
services (40% vs. 29%), and HIV testing (38% vs. 28%).
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The DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits Involving Underage
Drinking
An estimated 142,701 alcohol-related emergency department (ED) visits
reported to SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) system were made
by patients aged 12 to 20. Nearly half (42%) of drug-related ED
visits among patients aged 12 to 20 involved alcohol. Patients
aged 18 to 20 were approximately 3 times as likely as patients aged
12 to 17 to have an alcohol-related ED visit. ED visits involving
alcohol with other drugs were almost 2 times as likely as visits involving
only alcohol to result in admission to the hospital for inpatient care
(19% vs. 10%).
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