Drug Rehab Drugs of Abuse

Overall Estimates of Addiction Drug Rehab Need

• In 2000, an estimated 4.7 million people aged 12 or older (2.1 percent of the total population) needed addiction treatment for an illicit drug abuse problem. This includes 2.8 million classified by the survey with illicit drug dependence, 1.5 million classified with illicit drug abuse, and another 0.3 million who received specialty addiction treatment but were not classified as dependent or abusing.
• Of the 4.7 million people needing addiction treatment, 0.8 million people (16.6 percent of the people who needed addiction treatment) received treatment at a specialty facility.
• The addiction treatment gap was estimated to be 3.9 million people in 2000, or 1.7 percent of the total population.
• Of the 3.9 million people who needed but did not receive treatment in 2000, an estimated 381,000 reported that they felt they needed addiction treatment for their drug problem. This includes an estimated 129,000 who reported that they had made an effort but were unable to get treatment and 252,000 who reported making no effort to get addiction treatment.
• Among the 3.9 million people who needed but did not receive treatment in 2000, 62.3 percent were classified with drug dependence and 37.7 percent were classified with drug abuse. However, among the estimated 381,000 persons who felt they needed addiction treatment for a drug problem, 88.5 percent were classified with drug dependence and 11.5 percent were classified with drug abuse.

Drug Rehab Need By Age

• For the youngest age group (12 to 17), an estimated 1.1 million persons (4.6 percent of this population) needed addiction treatment for an illicit drug abuse problem in 2000. Of this group, only 0.1 million people (11.4 percent of the people aged 12 to 17 years who needed addiction treatment) received treatment, leaving an estimated treatment gap for youths of 1.0 million.
• The percent of the population in 2000 who needed addiction treatment for an illicit drug use problem was highest among persons aged 18 to 25 years (5.7 percent) and lowest among persons aged 26 and older (1.1 percent). An estimated 1.6 million persons aged 18 to 25 and 1.9 million persons aged 26 and older needed addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem in 2000.
• Among the estimated 381,000 persons who did not receive addiction treatment but reported that they felt they needed addiction treatment for their drug problem in 2000, 74,000 were aged 12 to 17, 103,000 were aged 18 to 25, and 204,000 were aged 26 and older. Thus, the percentage of the addiction treatment gap that felt they needed addiction treatment was 7.8 percent for those aged 12 to 17, 6.9 percent for those aged 18 to 25, and 14.3 percent for those aged 26 and older.

Drug Rehab Need By Gender

• Among persons aged 12 or older in 2000, the percentage of males needing addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem was higher than the percentage of females needing addiction treatment (2.6 vs. 1.6 percent). This translates to 2.7 million males and 1.9 million females needing addiction treatment. On the other hand, the percentage receiving specialty addiction treatment among those needing addiction treatment was higher for females than males (19.0 vs. 15.0 percent). However, this was not a statistically significant difference.
• Among youths aged 12 to 17 in 2000, the percentage of males needing addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem was higher than the percentage of females needing addiction treatment (5.0 vs. 4.2 percent). The percentage receiving specialty addiction treatment among youths needing addiction treatment was higher for males than females (13.0 vs. 9.4 percent). This was not a statistically significant difference.
• In 2000, 2.0 percent of whites aged 12 or older needed addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem. The percentage needing addiction treatment was about the same among blacks and Hispanics (2.5 and 2.4 percent, respectively). The highest rates of those needing addiction treatment were for persons reporting more than one race (5.5 percent) and for American Indians/Alaska Natives (4.3 percent); the lowest rate was for Asians (0.7 percent).
• Among whites needing addiction treatment, 17.8 percent received addiction treatment at a specialty facility. Only 9.0 percent of all Hispanics needing addiction treatment received addiction treatment. The percentage receiving addiction treatment among blacks who needed addiction treatment was 18.6 percent, although the sampling error associated with this estimate is large and the estimate is not shown in the tables.
• Whites accounted for most of the illicit drug addiction treatment need in 2000. Of the 4.7 million persons needing addiction treatment, 3.2 million (69 percent) were white. Whites accounted for 75 percent of the persons who received specialty addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem in 2000.

Drug Rehab Need By Geographic Area

• The percentage of persons needing addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem was lowest in the East South Central division (1.6 percent) and highest in the New England division (3.2 percent) in 2000.
• The percentage of persons needing addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem in 2000 was essentially the same for persons in large metropolitan counties, small metropolitan counties, and urbanized non-metropolitan counties (2.3, 2.0, and 2.0 percent, respectively). The percentage needing addiction treatment was lowest in completely rural counties (1.2 percent).

Drug Rehab Need By Education

• Needing addiction treatment is inversely related to educational status. Among adults aged 18 or older in 2000, those who had not completed high school had the highest percentage of persons needing addiction treatment (2.9 percent), while college graduates had the lowest percentage of persons needing addiction treatment for illicit drugs (1.1 percent). The percentage who received addiction treatment among persons who needed addiction treatment was 25.4 percent among those with less than a high school education.

Drug Rehab Need By Employment

• Current employment status also correlated with addiction treatment need in 2000. An estimated 7.7 percent of unemployed adults aged 18 or older needed addiction treatment for illicit drugs, while only 1.6 percent of full-time employed adults needed addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem.
• Most of the adult population needing addiction treatment for an illicit drug problem in 2000 was employed. Of the estimated 3.6 million persons aged 18 or older who needed addiction treatment, 1.9 million were employed full time and 0.6 million were employed part time. Thus, an estimated 70 percent of adults needing addiction treatment were employed. An estimated 359,000 unemployed adults needed addiction treatment.