Florida
Addiction Treatment Center Illicit Drugs Statistics
in the Us This report presents a first look at results from the 2008 National
Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an annual survey of the
civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the United States
aged 12 years old or older. The report presents national estimates
of rates of use, numbers of users, and other measures related
to illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco products. Measures related
to mental health problems also are presented, including data
on serious mental illness, depression, and the co-occurrence
of substance use and mental health problems. The report focuses
on trends between 2007 and 2008 and from 2002 to 2008, as well
as differences across population subgroups in 2008. Past Year Perceived Need for and Effort Made to Receive
Specialty Treatment among Persons Aged 12 or Older Needing,
But Not Receiving Treatment for Illicit Drug or Alcohol Use:
2008 Illicit Drug Use
• In 2008,
an estimated 20.1 million Americans aged 12 or older were current
(past month) illicit drug users, meaning they had used an illicit
drug during the month prior to the survey interview. This estimate
represents 8.0 percent of the population aged 12 years old or
older. Illicit drugs include marijuana/hashish, cocaine (including
crack), heroin, hallucinogens, inhalants, or prescription-type
psychotherapeutics used nonmedically. • The
rate of current illicit drug use among persons aged 12 or older
in 2008 (8.0 percent) was the same as the rate in 2007 (8.0
percent). • Marijuana was the most commonly
used illicit drug (15.2 million past month users). Among persons
aged 12 or older, the rate of past month marijuana use in 2008
(6.1 percent) was similar to the rate in 2007 (5.8 percent). • In 2008, there were 1.9 million current
cocaine users aged 12 or older, comprising 0.7 percent of the
population. These estimates were similar to the number and rate
in 2007 (2.1 million or 0.8 percent), but lower than the estimates
in 2006 (2.4 million or 1.0 percent). •
Hallucinogens were used in the past month by 1.1 million persons
(0.4 percent) aged 12 or older in 2008, including 555,000 (0.2
percent) who had used Ecstasy. These estimates were similar
to the corresponding estimates for 2007. •
There were 6.2 million (2.5 percent) persons aged 12 or older
who used prescription-type psychotherapeutic drugs nonmedically
in the past month. These estimates were lower than in 2007 (6.9
million or 2.8 percent). • The number of
past month methamphetamine users decreased by over half between
2006 and 2008. The numbers were 731,000 in 2006, 529,000 in
2007, and 314,000 in 2008. • Rates of current
use of illicit drugs in 2008 were higher among young adults
aged 18 to 25 (19.6 percent) than for youths aged 12 to 17 (9.3
percent) and adults aged 26 or older (5.9 percent). Among young
adults, there were no changes from 2007 to 2008 in the rate
of current use of marijuana (16.5 percent in 2008), psychotherapeutics
(5.9 percent), and hallucinogens (1.7 percent). The rate of
cocaine use in this age group declined from 2.6 percent in 2005
to 1.5 percent in 2008. • From 2002 to 2008,
there was an increase among young adults aged 18 to 25 in the
rate of current nonmedical use of prescription pain relievers
(from 4.1 to 4.6 percent) and in LSD (from 0.1 to 0.3 percent).
There were decreases in the use of inhalants (from 0.5 to 0.3
percent) and methamphetamine (from 0.6 to 0.2 percent). • Among those aged 50 to 59, the rate of past month
illicit drug use increased from 2.7 percent in 2002 to 4.6 percent
in 2008. This trend may partially reflect the aging into this
age group of the baby boom cohort, whose lifetime rate of illicit
drug use is higher than those of older cohorts. • Among persons aged 12 or older in 2007-2008 who used
pain relievers nonmedically in the past 12 months, 55.9 percent
got the drug they most recently used from a friend or relative
for free. Another 18.0 percent reported they got the drug from
one doctor. Only 4.3 percent got pain relievers from a drug
dealer or other stranger, and 0.4 percent bought them on the
Internet. Among those who reported getting the pain reliever
from a friend or relative for free, 81.7 percent reported in
a follow-up question that the friend or relative had obtained
the drugs from just one doctor. • Among unemployed
adults aged 18 or older in 2008, 19.6 percent were current illicit
drug users, which was higher than the 8.0 percent of those employed
full time and 10.2 percent of those employed part time. However,
most illicit drug users were employed. Of the 17.8 million current
illicit drug users aged 18 or older in 2008, 12.9 million (72.7
percent) were employed either full or part time. The number
of unemployed illicit drug users increased from 1.3 million
in 2007 to 1.8 million in 2008, primarily because of an overall
increase in the number of unemployed persons. •
In 2008, 10.0 million persons aged 12 or older reported driving
under the influence of illicit drugs during the past year. This
corresponds to 4.0 percent of the population aged 12 or older,
the same as the rate in 2007 (4.0 percent), but lower than the
rate in 2002 (4.7 percent). In 2008, the rate was highest among
young adults aged 18 to 25 (12.3 percent). Dependence on or Abuse of Specific Illicit Drugs in
the Past Year among Persons Aged 12 or Older: 2008  Data are presented for racial/ethnic groups based on current
guidelines for collecting and reporting race and ethnicity data
(Office of Management and Budget [OMB], 1997). Because respondents
were allowed to choose more than one racial group, a “two
or more races” category is presented that includes persons
who reported more than one category among the basic groups listed
in the survey question (white, black or African American, American
Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Other Pacific Islander,
Asian, Other). Respondents choosing both Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander but no other categories mentioned above
are classified in the combined “Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander” category instead of the “two or
more race” category. It should be noted that, except for
the “Hispanic or Latino” group, the racial/ethnic
groups discussed in this report include only non-Hispanics.
The category “Hispanic or Latino” includes Hispanics
of any race. Data also are presented for four U.S. geographic regions and
nine geographic divisions within these regions. These regions
and divisions, defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, consist of
the following groups of States: Source:
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009).
Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health:
National Findings (Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH Series H-36,
HHS Publication No. SMA 09-4434). Rockville, MD. Reach out to us. Recovery from addiction is just a click or a phone call away.
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