SAMHSA Celebrates Recovery Month and Releases Annual Household Survey on Drug Use; Survey Finds Decreases in Overall Youth Drug Use But Also Shows Significant Increase in Use for Older Adults

On September 7^th, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) held a press conference to kick off Recovery Month and to mark the release of the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).  Recovery Month is an annual month-long event that promotes access to recovery, celebrates those in treatment and recovery, and helps to educate communities about how individuals with addiction histories can overcome a number of barriers, stigma and discrimination.  The NSDUH is the primary source of information on the use of illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco in the United States.  Speakers at this press conference included: John Walters, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP); Dr. Eric Broderick, Acting Deputy Administrator of SAMHSA; Dr. H. Westley Clark, Director of SAMHSA’s Center for Substance Abuse Treatment; Tonya Wheeler, a woman in recovery for addiction to methamphetamine and president of Advocates for Recovery; and Ashley Hadeed, a teenager in recovery from an addiction to prescription medication.  While the NSDUH did show continuing decreases in drug use for young people, the survey also indicated a significant increase in drug use among individuals in their 50s.

Findings from the NSDUH showed that in 2005, 22.1 million people, or 9.1 percent of the population, were classified with substance dependence or abuse in the past year.  Between 2002 and 2005, there was no change in the number of persons with substance dependence or abuse.  In 2005, 2.3 million people reported receiving treatment at a specialty facility.  Therefore, according to the NSDUH, there were 20.9 million people who needed treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol use problem but did not receive treatment at a specialty facility in the past year.

The NSDUH also indicates that while the overall rate of illicit drug use has remained stagnant over the last three years with 19.7 million Americans reported as current drug users, the illicit drug usage rate for people between the ages of 50 and 59 has significantly increased.  The NSDUH found that the number of “baby-boomers” (persons aged 50-59) reporting current illicit drug use rose from 2.7 to 4.4 percent between 2002 and 2005. 

Rates of drug use among youth continue to decline; although the 2005 youth drug use rate is similar to 2004, youth drug use has declined from 11.6 percent in 2002 to 9.9 percent in 2005.  The NSDUH found that marijuana was the most common illicit drug and that 14.6 million people used marijuana in the past month.  However, the rate of current marijuana use among young people ages 12 to 17 has declined significantly from 8.2 percent in 2002 to 6.8 percent in 2005.  The overall use rate for cocaine is largely unchanged from 2004 but the number of young adults ages 18 to 25 who use cocaine has increased from 2.0 in 2002 to 2.6 percent in 2005.  The rate of heroin use has remained unchanged since 2002.  Between 2002 and 2004 the number of new methamphetamine users remained the steady around 300,000 but declined in 2005 to 192,000.

Although rates for non-medical prescription drug use among adults are largely unchanged the past year, these rates have risen for young adults.  6.4 million people reported using prescription drugs non-medically in the past month.  Of these individuals, 4.7 million misused narcotic pain relievers, 1.8 million misused tranquilizers and 1.1 million used stimulants (including 512,000 methamphetamine users).  The number of young adults using prescription drugs non-medically increased from 5.4 percent in 2002 to 6.3 percent in 2005. 

The NSDUH found that drinking among teenagers has declined from last year; 17.6 million reported drinking alcohol in 2004, which dropped to 16.5 million in 2005.  In addition, although 11.1 million teens reported binge drinking in 2004, this number dropped to 9.9 million in 2005.  Overall, approximately 55 million people, or 22.7 percent of the population, were classified as binge drinking; these individuals reported having five or more drinks on the same occasion on at least one day.  Sixteen million people, or 3.3 percent of the population, were classified as heavy drinkers because they engaged in binge drinking at least five times in the previous month. 

During the press conference, a number of the speakers emphasized the strides being made in reducing the number of teenagers who use alcohol and other drugs.  Assistant Surgeon General Eric B. Broderick, SAMHSA’s Acting Deputy Administrator, expressed that there has been a fundamental shift in drug use among young people in America, speaking about rates of teen drug use being down.  ONDCP Director John Walters stressed that the drop in teenage marijuana users and the increase in the average age of initiation of drug use could be attributed to drug use prevention efforts.  Director Walters expressed that teenagers are getting the message that drugs limit their futures and stressed that, to reduce drug use among young people, prevention work must continue in schools, the home, the church and the community.  In his comments, Dr. Clark spoke about the importance of Recovery Month and of spreading the event’s message that recovery from addiction is possible.  While noting the decline in drug use among young people, Dr. Clark did express his concern about the use of drugs by older Americans, particularly the finding about increased use among individuals in their 50’s.   

To mark Recovery Month, two individuals in recovery told their stories.  Ashley Hadeed detailed her experiences as a young person who had a problem with prescription drugs.  Ms. Hadeed spoke about her struggles, but emphasized her recovery from addiction and how the comprehensive drug addiction treatment services she received helped her to become well.  Ms. Hadeed also spoke about her plans to attend college in the fall. Tanya Wheeler, in long-term recovery from addiction to methamphetamine and alcoholism and drug-free for 16 years, spoke about how she began using drugs as a young teenager.  Ms. Wheeler, emphasizing her upper middle class background, emphasized that addiction affects people of all backgrounds.   Ms. Wheeler spoke about the importance of family and other supports to people in recovery and about how treatment is hard work.  Ms. Wheeler also spoke about how she is now a drug addiction treatment counselor and the president of a grass roots advocacy group, Advocates for Recovery.

Additional information about Recovery Month can be found at: http://www.recoverymonth.gov/2006/default.aspx. 

The NSDUH can be found at:  http://oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUHlatest.htm.