The United States Of Drug Addiction: New Report Details Americas Growing Drug Problems

#1 Money & Drugs

In 2014, the White House put together a report on the money spent purchasing illegal drugs across America each year. The study found that American’s spent almost a trillion dollars on drugs over the course of the last decade.

The specific drug used would fluctuate from year to year, but the average money spent remained about the same. In addition to these costs, the U.S. government spent an additional $40 to $50 billion each year in an effort to battle drug addiction.

#2 How Much Is Really Being Spent?

To gain a better understanding of how much money Americans are really spending on drugs, 1,000 drugs users were polled about their spending habits. Not only did they discover what drugs were being purchased the most, they also learned how much was being spent daily to purchase them, as well as the legal boundaries people would cross to afford their habit. Continue reading to see what has been learned about the real cost of drugs in America today.

#3 What People Spend on Drugs

In 2014, the Obama administration released a report showing the total Americans spent on illegal drugs every year for an entire decade. In 2010, the last year the study analyzed, people spent over $100 billion alone on these drugs. That does not include the financial or cultural impact on the communities these drugs affect, or the lost productivity of those who misuse these substances.

#4 People Love Marijuana.

Out of the 1,000 drug users that were surveyed who admitted to at least one misused substance in the past 12 months, more than 70 percent said the drug they used was marijuana at least once. While several states have legalized marijuana for various purposes, including recreational use, the National Institute on Drug Abuse says that misuse of marijuana can lead to dependence and that 1/3rd of those who use it develop some degree of marijuana use disorder. Their daily spending habits eclipsed $25 a day, equating to nearly $9,000 a year.

#5 Cocaine Is A Costly Habit.

The use of powerful stimulants like cocaine accounted for less than seven percent of those who were surveyed, but they spent more than 3x the amount of money on drugs every day than those who they’d misused substances like marijuana, opiates, or ecstasy. At more than $83 a day, a person who becomes hooked on cocaine could spend over $16,000 during their lifetime on getting a fix.

#6 Prescription Drug Epidemic.

In 2015, spending on prescription drugs climbed over 12% to a record high of $425 billion across America. As spending and distribution have increased over time, the abuse of prescription drugs for illicit and recreational purposes has also grown to record levels.

#7 Opiates Are An Epidemic.

Prescription opiates such as oxycodone, fentanyl, and hydrocodone are responsible for almost half of Americas opioid-related deaths. Out of these drugs, hydrocodone-based substances like Vicodin were most commonly abused among those surveyed, accounting for almost 48% of total opiate misuse. Oxycodone-based substances such as Oxycontin and Percocet accounted for more than 1/3rd of opiate misuse, while fentanyl accounted for less than 3% of total use.

#8 Benzo's Are Becoming A Problem As Well.

Among those who said that they had misused Benzodiazepines, which like opiates can be highly addictive, almost 48% said that they used Xanax, compared to 1/3rd saying they had misused Klonopin. Ativan and Valium each account for less than 10% of total Benzodiazepine use.

#9 What People Are Spending Each Day.

The survey found that of the 1,000 participants who shared their drug use habits, those with higher levels of education spent much more per day on average to purchase illegal substances than those who didn't have as much education.

#10 Education Determines The Amount Spent.

Participants who lacked a high school diploma (or equivalent) said they spent around $12 a day on drugs, while those with a high school degree said they would normally spend more than twice that amount. People with a bachelor’s degree spent, even more, averaging around $29 a day.

#11 Age Also Determines Spending.

Those with a graduate degree were found to spend the most on daily drug use by averaging almost $66 every day. By age groups, those between 30 and 39 years old had the highest average spend on illegal drugs, spending almost $40 every day, and people who earned between $30,000 and $40,000 annually were more likely to spend much more on drugs than those made more or less.

#12 Breaking The Law.

The study found that even those that said that they earned less than $10,000 a year still spent over $30 a day on average to get high. Given the cost of obtaining these illicit substances, the participants were asked what lengths they had gone to in the past in order to afford them.

#13 Theft Is The Most Common Crime Committed.

Several people said they had stolen from friends and family to fund their drug habits. More than 1/3rd of those who admitted to using mushrooms or crack cocaine in the past also said that they’d stolen from people in their lives to pay for these substances while more than one in five who had misused cocaine and LSD said the same.

#14 Selling Drugs Is Another Way People Fund Their Habit.

More than half of the participants said that had also sold drugs themselves in order to be able to purchase them, and more than one in 10 people who’d committed crimes in order to buy drugs said they’d participated in sex work such as prostitution. The chronic misuse of substances like cocaine and heroine can negatively impact the area of the brain that controls decision-making, potentially leading to tragic, and costly, mistakes.

#15 Drug Spending By State.

Around America, survey participants said that some states were spending more every day for drugs than others. Those who were surveyed from Alaska identified that their average daily spending for drugs was over $384 which is almost 5x the next highest state's spending. At the time of this writing, Alaska state officials are currently fighting a growing heroin epidemic. Around the state, deaths from heroin abuse have increased 3x over a five-year span between 2008 and 2013.

States such as Ohio ($77), West Virginia ($55), and Alabama ($54) also had high rates of daily drug spending. In Ohio, opioids like heroin are also partially to blame for the cash spent across the state on drugs. In 2017, a single Ohio county experienced 46 deaths due to fatal overdoses in a single month.

States with the lowest overall average spending included Nebraska, Idaho, and Mississippi, where money spent per day on drugs averaged less than $3 according to those surveyed.

#16 Overdrawn

More money is spent on illicit drugs daily and yearly than anyone would ever want to see or admit. With over a trillion dollars spent on these substances, the drug problem hasn’t disappeared and likely won't anytime soon. Upon further examination, communities across the country are calling out for help.

Answer that call for a friend or loved one who needs help, whether they can see if for themselves or not. Start breaking the cycle today.

#17 Methodology

1,000 drug users were surveyed to find out their daily drug spending, and the results were broken down by drug type as well as various demographic data. When looking at state-level data, any states with less than 10 responses were excluded. Any answers that were clearly unrealistic were excluded as well, such as an 18-19-year-old saying they have spent $99million on drugs so far, or someone saying they spend more than their yearly income each day.

Keep reading to see a few more facts that were discovered by this survey.

#18 Female Vs Male Spending Habits.

#19 How Much Sex Workers Spend During Their Lives.

#20 Education, Sex, And Drugs.

#21 Get Help Now.

If you or someone you love is struggling with drug addiction, don't wait to get help. Act now. You could save the life of yourself or a loved one. Visit https://www.addictions.com for more information on how to get help with breaking the bonds of addiction. Don't let drugs keep a stranglehold on your life any longer.