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Substance Abuse
The 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse found that an estimated 13.9 million Americans age 12 and older had used an illicit drug in the month prior to interview. This does not show a significant increase overall, however, among ages 12 to 17. This statistic increased 2.4% from 1996, primarily due to an increase among 12- to 13-year-olds.
Each year drug abuse kills 14,000 Americans and costs taxpayers nearly $70 billion in unnecessary health care costs, extra law enforcement, auto accidents, crime and lost productivity, not to mention the immeasurable effects it has on persons involved. Illicit drug abuse hurts families, businesses and neighborhoods, impedes education and chokes the criminal justice, health and social services systems. While overall use of drugs in the United States has fallen by half in the last 15 years, adolescent drug use continues at high levels.
Workplace alcohol, tobacco and other drug-related problems cost U.S. companies over $100 billion each year. Yet the workplace often has not been used optimally for prevention of these problems. Given that a large majority of the adult population of the United States is employed, the workplace is one of the most effective ways to reach adult Americans and, in turn, their families and communities. Studies show that alcohol and other drug users are far less productive, use three times as many sick days, are more likely to injure themselves or someone else and are five times more likely to file worker's compensation claims.
Facts on alcohol and drug abuse:
- Alcohol is a key factor in up to 68% of manslaughters, 62% of assaults, 54% of murders/attempted murders, 48% of robberies and 44 percent of burglaries.
- Among jail inmates, 42.2% of those convicted of rape reported being under the influence of alcohol or alcohol and drugs at the time of the offense
- Over 60% of men and 50% of women arrested for property crimes (burglary, larceny, robbery) in 1990 who were voluntarily tested revealed evidence of illicit drug use.
- Pregnant women who use drugs such as heroin, methadone, amphetamines, PCP, marijuana, crack or cocaine can give birth to addicted babies who undergo withdrawal, known as neonatal abstinence syndrome. Signs of NAS include increased sensitivity to noise, irritability, poor coordination, tremors and feeding problems.
- Alcohol, nicotine, marijuana, cocaine and heroin consumed by a nursing mother are passed on to her baby through breast milk.
- 50% to 80% of all child abuse and neglect cases substantiated by child protective services involve some degree of alcohol and other drug use by the child's parents.
- More than 70% of all AIDS cases among women are drug related, either through shared infected, intravenous drug needles or through sexual contact with men who became infected when they injected drugs. Women who use intravenous drugs also risk passing along HIV and drugs to their unborn children as well as passing HIV to their children through breast milk.
- Approximately 70% of all illegal drug users are currently employed.
- Up to 40% of industrial fatalities can be linked to alcohol consumption and alcoholism.
- Family members of substance-abusing employees generally have higher than average health care claims.
Sources: National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Drug Abuse; U.S. Department of Labor; National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, NCADD Fact Sheet; U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics; Institute for Health Policy, Brandeis University, Substance Abuse: The Nation's Number One Health Problem: Key Indicators for Policy.
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