CEWG January 09 Full Report - National Institute on Drug Abuse

Section III. <strong>CEWG</strong> Area Update Briefs and International Presentations
Drug Abuse Patterns and Trends in Los
Angeles County—Update: <strong>January</strong> 20<strong>09</strong>
Mary-Lynn Brecht, Ph.D.
For inquiries concerning this report, please contact
Mary-Lynn Brecht, Ph.D., Research Statistician,
Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, University
of California, Los Angeles, Suite 200, 1640 South
Sepulveda Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90025,
Phone: 310–267–5275, Fax: 310–473–7885,
E-mail: lbrecht@ucla.edu.
Overview of Findings: Overall numbers of
treatment admissions in <strong>January</strong>–June 2008 were
similar to those of the corresponding reporting
period in 2007 (27,944 and 26,657, respectively).
Four primary substances each accounted
for approximately one in five admissions: alcohol
(20 percent), methamphetamine (19 percent),
marijuana (19 percent), and heroin (19 percent).
Methamphetamine admissions have decreased
from 23 percent in calendar year (CY) 2007.
Cocaine (35 percent), marijuana (34 percent),
and methamphetamine (17 percent) accounted
for the substantial majority of Los Angeles-based
illicit drug items analyzed and recorded by the
<strong>National</strong> Forensic Laboratory Information System
(NFLIS) for <strong>January</strong>–June 2008. Results indicate a
continuing trend of an increasing percentage for
marijuana and decreases for cocaine and methamphetamine.
While remaining very small percentages
of NFLIS items, increases over 2007 levels
were also seen for hydrocodone and oxycodone.
Increases were also seen in these drugs for California
Poison Control System (CPCS) reports. Benzodiazepines
(29 percent) and narcotic analgesics
(16 percent) were the most frequently reported
classes of drugs in CPCS calls. The most recent
California Healthy Kids survey results indicated a
very slight increase in past 30-day inhalant use for
the period ending in 2007 over 2006 levels, and
stable trends for other major substances. Both
street and wholesale prices for methamphetamine
have remained stable in 2008, following earlier
substantial increases over 2006–2007 prices.
Wholesale prices for cocaine have increased, but
this has not yet impacted street prices. Prices for
other drugs have remained stable.
Updated Drug Abuse Patterns and
Emerging Patterns: While continuing to account
for a large proportion (19.4 percent) of
alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment admissions
in Los Angeles County in <strong>January</strong>–June
2008, methamphetamine admissions have decreased
from their 24 percent level of <strong>January</strong>–
June 2007 and have fallen slightly below alcohol
(20 percent). Hispanics represented a higher proportion
of methamphetamine admissions (56 percent)
than they did of admissions for other major
substances. Approximately one-sixth of NFLISreported
items tested in forensic labs contained
methamphetamine, ranking it third among types
of substances found (after cocaine and cannabis).
This represents a decrease over 2007 levels.
While only a small percentage (under 2 percent)
of CPCS calls reported methamphetamine in <strong>January</strong>–September
2008, this was a decrease from
2005 and 2007 levels. By early 2008 the street
price for methamphetamine had increased to
$240 per one-eighth ounce, nearly double that in
2006 and early 2007, but then has remained stable
through September 2008. Cocaine accounted for
16 percent of Los Angeles County AOD treatment
admissions in the first half of 2008, a majority
(57 percent) of whom were African American.
Of <strong>January</strong>–June 2008 NFLIS items, 35 percent
contained cocaine (a larger percentage than
for any other substance), a slight decrease from
2007. CPCS calls for cocaine poisoning were
relatively stable since 2005 (at 3 percent for <strong>January</strong>–September
2008). The wholesale price of cocaine
has continued its increase during 2008 (to
$18,500–$23,000 per kilogram, 15–30 percent
over 2007 prices), but street prices have not yet
been affected. Treatment admissions for MDMA
showed a slight increase over 2007 levels, but remained
at a very low level (0.2 percent). CPCS
reports for MDMA, while a small percentage of
total reports (2 percent), also showed an increase
for <strong>January</strong>–September 2008 over 2003–2007 levels,
However, MDMA ranked fifth among drugs
Proceedings of the Community Epidemiology Work Group, <strong>January</strong> 20<strong>09</strong> 49