Scope of the National Methamphetamine Threat
Recent years have seen a significant rise in the use of synthetic drugs, a worldwide trend implicating Europe, China, Thailand, and other countries. In the United States, the synthetic drug market has centered around methamphetamine and MDMA (Ecstasy). Methamphetamine use has been migrating from the West Coast eastward, leaving devastating social consequences wherever it takes hold.
According to the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, over 35 million U.S. residents (about 14.9% of the population) used an illicit drug sometime within the past year. Of these, approximately 1.5 million reported using methamphetamine during the year (representing 0.7% of the population), and about 12.4 million U.S. residents over the age of 12 had used methamphetamine at least once in their lifetime (representing 5.3% of the population).i
According to the Drug Abuse Warning Network's annual emergency department (ED) report, there were 670,307 drug abuse-related ED episodes in the U.S. during 2002 with 1,209,938 total drug mentions. Methamphetamine was mentioned 17,696 times in these ED episodes.ii
One of the most interesting aspects of the methamphetamine threat is its lack of national uniformity. Simply put, according to the National Drug Intelligence Center, in some areas of this country, methamphetamine use and production is not classified as a significant problem. Yet in other regions, it is a significant threat. The majority of reporting law enforcement agencies in the Pacific, West Central, and Southwest regions identify methamphetamine as their greatest drug threat. By contrast, very few law enforcement agencies in the Florida/Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic, New York/New Jersey and New England regions have identified methamphetamine as a primary threat. While there is also some level of disparity nationwide with respect to the marijuana, cocaine, and heroin threat, the difference is not as stark as with methamphetamine.
With respect to the State of Indiana, methamphetamine abuse is a growing threat, and abuse has spread from rural to more urban areas. Health officials indicate that the drug is
mostly used by middle class, blue-collar Caucasians, but is increasing in popularity
among youth. Much of the methamphetamine consumed in Indiana is generally manufactured in Mexico or the southwestern states and transported into Indiana. Local methamphetamine distributors (Nazi Labs) produce a higher purity product (30–40 % purity level), but do not produce large enough quantities to support wholesale distribution. Small individual operators produce enough methamphetamine for personal use, friends, and limited sales. Nazi labs,
usually constructed in bars or residential homes, produce enough for retail distribution.
i Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Results from the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings, September 2003:
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/nhsda/2k2nsduh/Results/2k2Results.htm#toc
ii Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Emergency Department Trends from the Drug Abuse Warning Network, Final Estimates, 1995–2002, July 2003:
http://dawninfo.samhsa.gov/old_dawn/pubs_94_02/edpubs/2002final/
