Cost of Drug Abuse

A new study sums up the cost of illicit drug abuse in America, putting the total at about $193 billion. However, others disagree about who is to blame for the extent of that cost.

Economic Impact of Illicit Drug Use

The recent study, released by the National Drug Intelligence Center, estimated the total cost of illicit drug abuse in this country to be $193 billion in 2007. To come up with the total, the center added up costs associated with drug abuse treatment, crime, health care, and loss of productivity due to drugs. This puts the economic impact of drug abuse at a level comparable to serious diseases, such as diabetes. Most of these costs are paid for through taxes, and many taxpayers are tired of picking up the tab for addicts who commit crimes, go to jail, make use of the taxpayer funded health care and judicial systems, and never seem to get better. If we can find a way to help these people get off drugs once and for all, we can save our country billions of dollars.

Cost of Prohibition

Others are not so sure that drug use is the problem. They argue that the prohibition of drug use is to blame. They look at the National Drug Intelligence Center data that states $56 billion of the cost is made up of criminal justice system costs. They claim that if drugs were made legal, we wouldn’t have to pay to prosecute drug abuse. They blame the government for the high economic impact of drug abuse and say the country is foolish to be waging the war on drugs.

Solving the Drug Problem

An American society without restrictions on drugs is hard to imagine. We might not have people in custody for illicit drug abuse, but we’d still have plenty of people in jail for crimes committed under the influence of drugs. Most crimes are committed as a result of drugs or to get a hold of drugs, and making drugs legal will not change that. All we have to do is look at the prescription drug epidemic to see that. Prescription drugs are legal and people find ways to abuse them and become irresponsible because of them.

There is a growing push in this country to legalize drugs, but any claims of what society would be like if they were legal is only speculation. We do know that drug abuse will not magically go away if drugs are made legal, so we will still need to work to treat individuals who are addicted to drugs. On the other hand, it is possible to throw a lot of money into enforcing drug laws, but we will help society more in the long run by getting drug addicts into treatment rather than jail. Whether drugs are made legal or not, the best things for us to focus on right now are treatment and rehab.

Sources

Illegal Drug Use Cost U.S. $193 Billion in 2007, Study Says

National Drug Intelligence Center fails intelligence test

Drug abuse costs rival those of chronic diseases, report says