Data and Statistics
Nationally Native Americans (American Indians/Alaskan Natives and Native Hawaiians) Have The Highest Rates Of Methamphetamine Abuse. In studies of “past year methamphetamine use” Native communities have the highest use rates, 1.7% for American Indians/Alaskan Natives and 2.2% for Native Hawaiians. This rate is substantially higher than other ethnicities: whites (0.7%), Hispanics (0.5%), Asians (0.2%) and African-Americans (0.1%) (SAMHSA).
80-85% Of The Indian Families In Child Welfare Systems Are Estimated To Have Drug Or Alcohol Abuse Issues. The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) estimates that 80-85% of the Indian families in child welfare systems have drug or alcohol abuse issues. The recent increase in child related meth cases in Indian Country, however, seems to be in child neglect cases rather than child abuse.
Nationwide 48% of Tribal law enforcement respondents in the BIA Law Enforcement Survey reported an increase in child neglect/abuse cases due to recent increases in meth use.
Tribal Strategies Against Violence: Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes Case Study
Tribal Strategies Against Violence: Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians Case Study
The Role of Community Mental Health Centers as Rural Safety Net Providers
Map: The Reach of Meth
Geographic coverage: United States
An interactive map which shows the spread of the epidemic through the states, based on the number of meth users admitted for drug treatment per 100,000 residents in 2003, the most recent year for which nationwide data is available. Click on each state for information about drug treatment admissions, meth lab seizures, and recent state laws (including 2004) aimed at combating the epidemic.
Sponsoring organization: Public Broadcasting System
Mexican meth: Where it comes from and how it gets here.
Methamphetamine Lab Seizures in Idaho 1999 - 2005
# In 2002, 64.1% of those in addiction treatment located in Washington were male. 35.9% of the individuals in drug addiction treatment residing in Washington during 2002 were female.
# The largest age group admitted into to a drug rehab during 2002 in Washington were between the ages of 36-40 (14.4%).
# The second largest age group attending drug rehabilitation in Washington during 2002 were between the ages of 31-35 (13%).
# 71.8% of the individuals in drug treatment located in Washington during 2002 were Caucasian.
Extent of Use
According to the 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an estimated 10.4 million Americans aged 12 or older used methamphetamine at least once in their lifetimes for nonmedical reasons, representing 4.3% of the U.S. population in that age group. The number of past year methamphetamine users in 2005 was approximately 1.3 million (0.5% of the population aged 12 or older) and the number of past month methamphetamine users was 512,000 (0.2%).3
National Survey on Drug Use and Health**
In 2006, there were an estimated 731,000 current users of methamphetamine aged 12 or older (0.3 percent of the population). Of the 259,000 people who used methamphetamine for the first time in 2006, the mean age at first use was 22.2 years, which is up considerably from the mean age of 18.6 in 2005. From 2005 to 2006, lifetime methamphetamine abuse increased among those 26 and older, particularly among those 26--34 years of age.
Rates of past-year methamphetamine use among persons aged 12 years or older were the highest in the Western United States (1.6 percent), followed by the South (0.7 percent), Midwest (0.5 percent), and Northeast (0.3 percent) regions of the country.
Monitoring the Future Survey
According to the 2007 Monitoring the Future Survey--a national survey of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders, methamphetamine abuse among students has been declining in recent years; however, it remains a concern. Survey results show that 1.8 percent of 8th graders, 2.8 percent of 10th graders, and 3.0 percent of 12th graders have tried methamphetamine. In addition, 0.6 percent of 8th graders, 0.4 percent of 10th graders, and 0.6 percent of 12th graders were current (past-month) methamphetamine abusers in 2007. Decreases in past-year abuse of methamphetamine were seen for 8th (from 1.8 percent to 1.1 percent) and 12th graders (from 2.5 percent to 1.7 percent) from 2006 to 2007.
