NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE EPIDEMIOLOGIC ...

of 2004 were in California. In the past, these largescale
labs were capable of producing 10 or more
pounds of finished methamphetamine in a single production
cycle, but superlabs have stepped up the pace
and are now capable of producing 20 or more pounds
of finished drug in a single production cycle (NDIC
2004). The LA HIDTA reported the highest proportion
of superlabs seized throughout California (14
out of 25 superlabs seized between January 1 and
July 1, 2004, or 56 percent). This proportion is a
slight decrease over LA HIDTA’s contribution in
2003. Within the LA HIDTA, Los Angeles County
led with six superlab seizures, followed by Riverside
County (four), San Bernardino County (three), and
Orange County (one). Furthermore, totals reported in
the LA HIDTA exceeded totals reported by all States
outside of California.
The cost to clean up labs located in the LA HIDTA in
the first half of 2004 totaled $466,003. One-third of
this total corresponds to the cost of cleaning up Los
Angeles County laboratories, second only to Riverside
County (36 percent of the cleanup costs). It is
important to note that these clean-up figures do not
encompass building and environment remediation,
which each cost taxpayers even more money.
A negative consequence of clandestine methamphetamine
laboratory activity is the affect on children
living in or around the makeshift, often home- or
apartment-based, laboratories. Local, statewide, and
national efforts, known as Drug Endangered Children
Programs, have been launched to address the issue of
what happens to children who are found at a
methamphetamine laboratory when it is seized. Nationally,
in the first half of 2004, 2,016 children were
“affected” by methamphetamine laboratories. Nine
percent of the children affected resided in California.
Within California, 109 of the 174 affected children
resided in the 4 LA HIDTA counties. The highest
proportion were reported in Riverside County (73 of
the 109 children), followed by San Bernardino
County (22), Los Angeles County (9), and Orange
County (5). It is important to note that these numbers
are underreported, due to differences in county- and
State-level reporting procedures.
Depressants
In the first half of 2004, treatment and recovery program
admissions associated with primary barbiturate,
benzodiazepine, or other sedative/hypnotic abuse
continued to account for less than 1 percent of all
admissions in Los Angeles County.
Of the 1,318 pharmaceuticals reported among those
seeking detoxification, overmedication, and other
EPIDEMIOLOGIC TRENDS IN DRUG ABUSE—Los Angeles County
cases accessed from DAWN Live! for the first half of
2004 in the Los Angeles division, 192 (15 percent)
were antidepressants, 218 were antipsychotics (17
percent), 25 were barbiturates (2 percent), and 266
were benzodiazepines (21 percent) (exhibit 14). For
all of the above categories except for barbiturates,
overmedication was the most frequently stated reason
for visiting the emergency department. The proportion
of overmedication cases ranged from a low of 70
percent (for benzodiazepines) to a high of 88 percent
(antipsychotics).
Los Angeles County-based California Poison Control
System calls involving exposure to benzodiazepines
fluctuated. From 2000 to 2001, benzodiazepinerelated
exposure calls increased from 64 to 83 calls
(exhibit 8b). In 2002, the number of calls decreased
to 52, and such calls then increased to 70 in 2003. In
the first half of 2004 alone, 52 benzodiazepine exposure
calls were reported, which may indicate a further
increase from the number of calls seen in 2003. Between
January 2003 and June 2004, 19 of the benzodiazepine-related
exposure calls were for alprazolam,
29 were for clonazepam, and 20 were for diazepam.
In addition to calls for benzodiazepine exposures, a
total of 52 antidepressant exposure calls and 25 antipsychotic
calls were reported between January 2000
and June 2004.
Approximately 688 of the 54,240 items analyzed
and reported to the NFLIS system in calendar year
2003 were identified as pharmaceuticals/prescripttion/non-controlled
non-narcotic medications (as
opposed to illicit substances). Of those, roughly 24
percent (163 items) were found to be benzodiazepines.
The most frequently cited benzodiazepines
were diazepam (75 items; 46 percent) and clonazepam
(48 items; 29 percent).
According to LA CLEAR, Valium retails for $2 per
tablet (exhibit 13), which is one-half the cost reported
in the June 2004 report.
Phencyclidine (PCP) and Hallucinogens
Primary PCP treatment admissions accounted for
approximately 1.0 percent of all admissions in the
first half of 2004 (exhibit 3). The proportion of PCP
admissions among all admissions has been stable for
several years, but the overall number of PCP admissions
increased 89 percent from 1999 to the first half
of 2003. In the second half of 2003, however, the
number of PCP admissions decreased slightly (16
percent) to 262 admissions, and they continued to
decrease further (12 percent) in the first half of 2004 to
230 admissions. Alcohol (23 percent), cocaine/crack
(22 percent), and marijuana (18 percent) were the three
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