It's Christmas for drug policy data nerds! In late December to little fanfare -- not so much as a tweet! -- the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released state-level numbers from the most recentNational Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).
The national-level data from this study, released back in September, showed that drug and alcohol use rates among all Americans is essentially flat, while teen use is actually trending downward. These figures were borne out by more recent 2014 numbers from the federal government's other major drug study, the Monitoring the Future survey.
The new state-level numbers paint a more nuanced picture of drug use in the U.S. I'm going to focus on marijuana for today's post, since that's where most of the action's happening at the policy level. The first big takeaway? Colorado and Washington -- the states voting to legalize weed in 2012 -- saw big spikes in their overall marijuana use rates in 2012 and 2013.
For the state-level numbers, SAMSHA combines two years of data to ensure an adequate sample size. So, for instance, 2013 on the chart above actually reflects 2012 AND 2013. I've highlighted Colorado and Washington, as well as the U.S. total. You can mouseover the other lines to see rates in the other states.
The first important thing to point out is that since these numbers only go through 2013, they only reflect the period when Washington and Colorado had legalized the possession of weed, but had not yet set up their fully taxed and regulated marijuana markets -- that didn't happen until this past year. So in this context, the spike in use is even more noteworthy than it would be otherwise -- we can probably expect rates to climb even higher when the data reflect the effects of a fully legal marketplace.
On the other hand, plenty of other states saw their use rates climb by significant amounts too. Maine. Georgia. Maryland. Missouri. So Colorado and Washington are by no means alone in seeing increased marijuana use.
It's also significant that despite dramatic warnings from the attorneys general of Oklahoma and Nebraska, pot use in those states is basically flat over this period -- so at least from these numbers it's premature to claim that Colorado's weed is flowing into those states at significant rates.
In fact, Nebraska and Oklahoma can boast some of the lowest marijuana use rates in the nation. Another Colorado neighbor, Kansas, has the country's lowest rate. I mapped the current state-level use rates below.
Here's another important datapoint: the spike in use in Colorado and Washington happened almost exclusively among the 26-and-older crowd: use among teens aged 12-17 edged upward a little bit in those states, but this change was not statistically significant.
In other words, the great marijuana apocalypse we were warned about isn't happening. The prohibitionist crowd has some explaining to do.
ReplyDeleteThis is admitted as if it were a good thing? That more young adults are stoned?
ReplyDeleteGet a life.
I think the problem the hot-and-bothered legalize-dope crowd refuses to acknowledge is that the legal marijuana states and the "medical" marijuana states are allowing an economic stimulus package that encourages consumption and distribution of all kinds of drugs.
The thrill-seeking derelicts who buy and sell marijuana, are literally the very same people who buy and sell all the rest of the drugs in this country. They're stupid and wasting their lives away.
Marijuana users are a clear menace in society. Like Bob Dylan's song said,
"Well, they’ll stone you and say that it’s the end
Then they’ll stone you and then they’ll come back again
They’ll stone you when you’re riding in your car
They’ll stone you when you’re playing your guitar."
They'll stone your cat, your dog and your kids too. These people are idiots.
It's called the drug culture. And these doped-up nutcases love their dope.
Raise the fines for possession. And take away their drivers licenses. Why should the rest of us have to share the road with these potheads?
Because prohibition means nothing to young people who can get weed anytime they want anyway. It's all around them all the time. It's not stupid laws that stop them - it's their own choice weather or not to partake.
ReplyDeleteI agree, they should all be on pharmaceutical drugs, because its the American way. Damn hippies. I hear Indonesia puts drug offenders to death, you might look to move there so you can be around more like minded people.
ReplyDeleteShouldn't you be standing in the front yard shaking your cane at "those damn kids"?
ReplyDeleteYep. Legalization is completely due to four teens and a dog in a colorful "hippy" van. Darn...., and when the hell will Florida get on the bandwagon? Oh, I know, when the amount of revenue the legalized States are pulling in hits home in Tallahassee.
ReplyDelete