U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Indicators of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Trends

NCJ Number
120267
Date Published
1989
Length
38 pages
Annotation
This report illustrates the extent and costs of alcohol and drug problems and current trends in California.
Abstract
Some 4 to 6 million Californians over the age of 14 drink an alcoholic beverage at least once a week, making alcohol the State's most widely used drug. In 1987, its per capita alcohol consumption figure (38.8 gallons of beer, wine, and distilled spirits) was 20 percent higher than the national average. In the same year, 4,443 alcohol-drug emergencies were reported by sampled hospitals in the Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego areas alone. The alcohol and drug abuse problem costs California an estimated $17.7 billion annually, or $631 per individual. 13 tables, 21 graphs.