Drugs Cost To Society

A study prepared by The Lewin Group for the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism estimated the total economic cost of alcohol and drug abuse to be $245.7 billion for 1992. Of this cost, $97.7 billion was due to drug abuse.

This estimate includes substance abuse treatment and prevention costs as well as other healthcare costs, costs associated with reduced job productivity or lost earnings, and other costs to society such as crime and social welfare. The study also determined that these costs are borne primarily by governments (46 percent), followed by those who abuse drugs and members of their households (44 percent).The 1992 cost estimate has increased 50 percent over the cost estimate from 1985 data. The four primary contributors to this increase were:

• the epidemic of heavy cocaine use
• the HIV epidemic
• an eightfold increase in state and Federal incarcerations for drug offenses
• a threefold increase in crimes attributed to drugs
  

More than half of the estimated costs of drug abuse were associated with drug-related crime. These costs included lost productivity of victims and incarcerated perpetrators of drug- related crime (20.4 percent); lost legitimate production due to drug-related crime careers (19.7 percent); and other costs of drug-related crime, including Federal drug traffic control, property damage, and police, legal, and corrections services (18.4 percent). Most of the remaining costs resulted from premature deaths (14.9 percent), lost productivity due to drug-related illness (14.5 percent), and healthcare expenditures (10.2 percent).

Narconon Arrowhead provides more drug information and assistance to people struggling with addiction. Log onto www.stopaddiction.com or call 1-800-468-6933.