NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE EPIDEMIOLOGIC ...

4,688 major substances of abuse reported in the Los
Angeles division, 289 (6 percent) were heroin (exhibit
7). Heroin was the fifth most likely major substance
to be reported, following alcohol, cocaine,
stimulants (amphetamines and methamphetamine),
and marijuana. Seventy percent of the patients reporting
heroin use were male; 42 percent were Hispanic
(followed by 40 percent White and 16 percent
Black); 34 percent were age 45–54; and 82 percent
reported injecting heroin. A total of 615 chief complaints
were logged for individuals reporting heroin.
The top three complaints were psychiatric condition
(103 complaints); intoxication (101 complaints); and
abscesses, cellulitis, and skin/tissue problems (69
complaints). Heroin-using patients were most likely
to be discharged home (36 percent) or admitted to a
psychiatric inpatient ward (28 percent).
Los Angeles County-based California Poison Control
System calls involving exposure to heroin fluctuated
between 15 and 20 from 2000 to 2003 (exhibit 8a). In
the first half of 2004 alone, 11 heroin exposure calls
were reported, which may indicate a shifting upward
trend. Between January 2003 and June 2004, 79 percent
of the heroin-exposed callers were male, and 67
percent were between the ages of 26 and 54. An additional
11 percent of the callers were between the ages
of 18 and 25.
According to CHKS data for the 2003–2004 school
year (exhibit 10), 3.3 percent of all Los Angeles
County secondary school students (including 7th, 9th,
and 11th graders, and a small sample of nontraditional
students) who responded to the survey had
ever used heroin. A breakdown of the data by grade
level illustrated that lifetime heroin use was nearly
identical among responding 9th graders (3.1 percent)
and 11th graders (3.0 percent). When asked about
past-6-month use of other drugs, heroin, or sedatives,
6.3 percent of 9th graders and 5.2 percent of 11th
graders responded in the affirmative (exhibit 11).
A total of 441 heroin arrests were made within the
city of Los Angeles from January 1 to June 30, 2004.
This represented a 30-percent increase from the number
of heroin arrests made in the first half of 2003.
Heroin arrests accounted for approximately 2.5 percent
of all narcotics arrests made from January 1 to
June 30, 2004.
Eight and one-half pounds of black tar heroin were
seized within the city of Los Angeles in the first half of
2004, a decline of 4 percent from the amount seized
during the same time in 2003. Similarly, seizures of
other types of heroin decreased by 15 percent, from 8.9
pounds seized in the first half of 2003 to 7.6 pounds
seized during the first half of 2004. The street value of
EPIDEMIOLOGIC TRENDS IN DRUG ABUSE—Los Angeles County
all seized heroin accounted for 5 percent of the total
street value of all drugs seized in the first half of 2004.
According to NFLIS data based on 54,240 analyzed
items reported by participating laboratories within Los
Angeles County between October 1, 2003, and September
30, 2004, only 3.9 percent (2,131) of all items
analyzed were found to be heroin. This small proportion
corresponds to the small proportion of heroin
(black tar and other forms) reported among Los Angeles
City seizures.
As in the past, Los Angeles is the primary market for
Mexican black tar heroin, and to a lesser extent,
brown powder heroin distributed to other Western
States (NDIC 2004). In addition, Mexican black tar
heroin remains the predominant type of heroin used
by Los Angeles County users. Mexican criminal
groups control the transportation and wholesale, midlevel,
and retail activity (NDIC 2004). According to
LA CLEAR, the wholesale price per kilogram of
Mexican black tar heroin is approximately $20,000
(the same price reported in the last few CEWG reports)
(exhibit 13). The current mid-level and retail
prices are $500–$800 per “pedazo” (Mexican ounce)
and $90–$100 per gram, which are stable since the
last report. A regular ounce is 28.5 grams, whereas a
pedazo is 25.0 grams.
Mexican brown powder heroin sells for a wholesale
price of $25,000 per kilogram, when available in the
area. Retail distribution of Southeast Asian heroin
remains limited, but it is associated with a wholesale
price range of $35,000–$40,000 for a 300–350-gram
unit and $70,000–$80,000 for a 700–750-gram unit.
The lack of China white on the streets is related, in
part, to local users’ preference for black tar.
The LA HIDTA and NDIC continue to report that Colombian
drug trafficking organizations may be establishing
networks within the Los Angeles area to distribute
South American heroin. The wholesale price
for a kilogram of Colombian heroin is $86,000–
$100,000. This type of heroin has a purity level of 94
percent. The LA HIDTA also reports that because the
Los Angeles metropolitan area has one of the largest
Middle Eastern populations in the United States,
Southwest Asian opium trafficking activities have increased
in the area. Southwest Asian opium is associated
with a cost of $650–$800 for an 18-gram stick.
Other Opiates/Narcotics
Other opiates/synthetics continue to constitute a marginal
proportion of all Los Angeles County treatment
admissions. Their representation as a primary drug of
abuse has increased slightly in the local treatment
Proceedings of the Community Epidemiology Work Group, Vol. II, January 2005 101