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Chapter II (continued)
3. Cocaine
Overall
usage — Cocaine use stabilized in the United States between
1992 and 1998. Past-month cocaine use declined from 3 percent of
the population (5.7 million) in 1985 to 0.7 percent (1.4 million)
in 1992, and did not change significantly through 1998. An estimated
1.8 million Americans were past-month cocaine users in 1998, a statistically
insignificant increase from 1997 (1.5 million) and 1996 (1.7 million).
The number of frequent and occasional*
users of cocaine remained statistically unchanged since 1992. In
1998, the number of frequent users of cocaine was estimated at 595,000
compared to 682,000 in 1997. The number of occasional users decreased
from 2.6 million in 1997 to 2.4 million in 1998. 40
In 1998, there were an estimated 3.3 million hardcore chronic users
of cocaine in the United States. Between 1992 and 1998 the estimated
number of hardcore chronic cocaine users remained relatively stable,
ranging between 3.3 and 3.6 million. 41
Despite the stabilization of overall use since 1992, the number
of first-time users of any form of cocaine rose between 1996 and
1997 from 670,000 to 730,000. This level is still lower than during
the early 1980s when the new initiate figures were between 1.1 and
1.4 million per year. 42
Current
Cocaine Use (Past-Month)
Source: SAMHSA, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (various years)
Use
among youth — The 1999 MTF reported that among eighth graders,
the rate of past-year use of crack cocaine declined 14 percent (from
2.1 to 1.8 percent) from 1998; this was the first such decrease
in the 1990s. In 1999 the rate of past-month use of crack cocaine
among tenth graders dropped 27 percent (1.1 to 0.8 percent) from
1998; twelfth graders were the only youth group that did not report
a decline in past-month use. The perceived harmfulness among twelfth
graders for trying crack once or twice fell 8 percent (from 52.2
to 48.2 percent) between 1999 and 1998. 43
Cocaine
Inflation Rates
Source: SAMHSA, 1998 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse
Availability
— Cocaine continues to be readily available in nearly all
major metropolitan areas. 44
The August 1999 report of the Semiannual Interagency Assessment
of Cocaine Movement estimated that 174 metric tons of cocaine arrived
in the United States in the first six months of 1999. 45
Approximately 60 percent of the cocaine smuggled into the U.S. crosses
the Southwest border. 46
Average
Age of First Cocaine Use
Source: SAMHSA, 1998 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse
Over
the past three years, domestic cocaine availability has been estimated
at 347 metric tons for 1996, 281 metric tons for 1997, and 301 metric
tons for 1998. These estimates were developed by an ONDCP-sponsored
drug flow analysis using a composite model that integrates four
independent measures of cocaine availability, from both a consumption
approach and several supply approaches. 47
Since 1989, the average retail purity of cocaine remained relatively
stable - between 65 and 80 percent.48
Similarly, the retail price of pure cocaine has remained relatively
stable since 1994 at $170 per pure gram. 49
Law-enforcement agencies throughout the nation continue to report
serious problems with cocaine, crack, and related criminal activity.
Approximately 60 percent of agencies queried by NDIC reported cocaine
as the greatest threat.50
Average
Price For Cocaine
*Based on annualized data through June 1998
Source: 1999 ONDCP-Adjusted from DEA STRIDE Data
Cocaine Purity
at the Retail Level
*Based on annualized data through June 1998
Source: 1999 ONDCP-Adjusted from DEA STRIDE Data
Source: DEA, Federal-wide Drug Seizure System (FDSS)
*
A frequent user is defined as one who uses a controlled substance
on fifty-one or more days during the past year. An occasional user
is defined as one who uses a controlled substance on twelve or fewer
days during the past year.
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