The cost of alcohol abuse is much higher than drug abuse in California, study says

The misuse and abuse of alcohol and drugs can have various repercussions, not only on the people who do it and their families, but also on society as a whole. One of its main consequences is the financial burden. In addition to causing health complications and raising public safety concerns, alcohol and drugs cost the United States billions of dollars each year.

Like the impact, the economic cost of these substances varies greatly from place to place. In fact, the cost of alcohol abuse is relatively much higher than the cost of drug abuse in most U.S. counties. Since studies relating to the economic and social costs of alcohol and drug abuse generally They are conducted at the state and national level, this allows legislators to better assess problems within their jurisdiction and propose countermeasures.

Similarly, a study, led by the author Ted miller and conducted at the Prevention Research Center of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, it sought to discover the consequences of alcohol and drug abuse in California and was published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research (ACER).

Alcohol abuse cost California $ 129 billion in 2010

The study highlighted the telling economic burden of drug and alcohol problems on California taxpayers’ money in all 58 counties and 50 medium-sized cities. Alcohol-related problems were found to be more frequent and more expensive than drug-related problems in California. Furthermore, both costs and impacts varied greatly from place to place. Some other findings are as follows:

• While alcohol-related problems cost $ 129 billion in 2010, which is equivalent to $ 3,450 for every Californian, drug-related problems cost $ 44 billion in the same year.

• The highest per capita cost ($ 7,819) of the alcohol problem was more than three times the lowest per capita cost ($ 2,588). Among counties with drug problems, the cost per capita ranged from $ 608 to $ 3,786.

• Rates of drug and alcohol related problems were found to be highest in California cities. The highest per capita cost of alcohol-related problems in a city was $ 10,734, 11 times higher than the city with the lowest costs. Among cities, the highest per capita cost of drug-related problems was $ 7,159, almost 19 times higher than the city with the lowest cost.

Consequently, the disintegration of costs related to alcohol and drugs is as follows:

• Crashes and accidents while under the influence of alcohol cost $ 26 billion in 2010.

• Of the $ 10 billion cost borne due to substance use violence, 73 percent was attributed to alcohol, while the remaining 27 percent was attributed to drugs.

• Of the $ 127 billion in expenses incurred due to other illnesses and injuries, 73 percent of the costs were due to alcohol-related problems. Similarly, 82 percent of the $ 4 billion cost incurred due to non-violent crime was attributed to drug abuse.

• Seventy-four percent of the $ 2 billion incurred in treatment expenses was attributed to drug-related problems.

The study authors believe the findings can help legislators and help the state plan and allocate resources for substance abuse problems. In addition, this study provides a crucial tool for predicting and warning drug and alcohol related problems, as well as a crucial means of drawing localized cost estimates.

According to Dr. Miller, “Effective funding for substance abuse prevention, compliance, and treatment depends on understanding the variation in alcohol and other drug-related problems from place to place. Estimates combine data from many health and social problems, a comprehensive and comprehensive measure for use in understanding how communities shape their distinctive social environments and to monitor the effectiveness of our intervention strategies. “

Avoid the death trap

In 2010, alcohol and drug-related problems in California caused 22,281 and 5,533 deaths, respectively. Additionally, alcohol and drug-related crimes were responsible for 350,000 and 164,000 deaths, respectively. These large and disturbing numbers pertain to only one of the 50 US states, indicating a much larger magnitude of the problem.