Drastic Increases in Cocaine and Methamphetamine Could Mean a Second US Drug Crisis

Amid the lethal opioid crisis which is killing 115 Americans each day, another major drug problem is emerging in the US which is continuing to become bigger and bigger each year. An article from PR Newswire stated that cocaine and methamphetamines have become a major concern. Quoting Dr Carise, Chief Scientific Officer for Recovery Centers of America, the article said that there were “drastic increases in the number of people addicted to and dying from overdoses involving cocaine and methamphetamine use” with a further statement revealing that this recent drug trend correlates with the increase in international production and trafficking.

According to the US High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program, cocaine made up 83 percent of drug seizures in 2017, whilst methamphetamines made up 14 percent. The increased use of methamphetamine was most notable in the southwestern states where it more than doubled within 3 years.
Meanwhile, coca production (part of the cocaine production process) more than tripled in Columbia from 2012 to 2016, according to a UN Report. The number of cocaine-related deaths in 2016 jumped from less than 5000 the previous year to more than 10,000.

Dr Carise went on to say how attention is “too narrowly focused on opioids” and multiple drug trafficking is rampant, calling the need for better drug prevention strategies which she claims are currently “ineffective”.

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