Combating Illegal Drug Use: We Can Succeed 

The vast majority — 85% — of Americans age 12 and over do not currently use any illegal drug, including marijuana, cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, inhalants or use prescription drugs nonmedically. This speaks to the measurable, yet incomplete, success of the US effort to combat illegal drug use: 

• Illegal drug use in the US peaked in 1979 when 14.1% of the population aged 12 and older were current users of illegal drugs.

• In 1992, illegal drug use in the US fell to a low of 5.8%.

• In 2021, illegal drug use reached 14.3%.

In terms of overall economic impact, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) estimated the social costs of drug abuse are over $193 billion every year. This sum includes lost productivity, health care costs, and criminal justice expenditures for all illegal drugs combined. 

The overall dramatic decline in illegal drug use from 1979 to the present is a major public health success and should be recognized as such. If this were any other type of public health problem, the decline in the rate of illegal drug use from 1979 to the modern low in 1992 would be lauded as a remarkable achievement. It is also important to recognize that the 59% drop in illicit drug use from 1979 to 1992 provides further evidence that dramatic declines in drug use are possible and worth striving for through innovative policies and programs. The rise since 1992 is mostly attributable to increases since 1992 in marijuana use, especially among adults. Lessons from the striking fall in drug use from 1979 to 1992 are important today and are built into IBH policy recommendations.

One of the most significant factors in the decision by youth to use or not to use drugs is their perception of the harm that could come from using drugs. The perceived risk of using marijuana is a pivotal factor. The graph below shows the relationship of the perception of harm to the prevalence of marijuana use. Those who advocate for the legalization of marijuana and the normalization of marijuana use claim that marijuana is harmless. They discount the growing body of research that indicates that serious mental and physical damage is caused by marijuana. Marijuana use is especially harmful to young people in large part because the developing brain is particularly vulnerable to its effects. This information is vital to the country’s efforts to reduce illegal drug use. 

The increase in youth drug use rates nationally from 1992 to 1997 was the direct result of well-funded pro-drug efforts to change the public's attitudes toward illicit drug use. In the last few years there has been a newly energized national response at the grassroots and federal policy levels that seek to protect youth from the use of the drugs by showing that illegal drug use, particularly marijuana use, is not a harmless, casual lifestyle choice.