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New York Drug Statistics and Facts

  • The number of admissions for drug and alcohol rehabilitation rose to 310,506 in New York in 2010. 75 percent of all admissions were male, and 25 percent were female
  • The New York Post reports there were 274 Cocaine related deaths in New York City, in 2010, down from 478 in 2006.
  • The number of individuals admitted with co-occurring mental health disorders and alcohol or drug abuse in New York jumped from 9 percent in 1992 to 36 percent in 2006.
  • Nearly one million New Yorkers information using illegal drugs in the past year (16 percent). The national rate is 14 percent.
  • Marijuana, the most common illegal drug is used by nearly 730,000 New Yorkers (12 percent) yearly. Use is highest among 18 to 25 year olds (30 percent).
  • Between 2002 to 2006, the number of alcohol and drug treatment centers in New York dropped from 1,260 centers to 1,030 while abuse alcohol and drug abuse remained a serious problem.
  • Suicide can be viewed as a form of self-destructive, violent behavior. In a study of 749 cases of suicide in New York City, Cocaine was present in 18 percent to 22 percent of cases.
  • Alcohol abuse remained a serious problem in New York, in 2010, with 58,413 people being admitted for main alcohol dependence followed by 78,371 people admitted for alcohol addiction with a secondary substance.
  • In 2010, 23,719 people smoked Cocaine and entered treatment, in New York, with an additional 12,265 that received treatment for Cocaine consumed by other way than smoking.
  • Excluding marijuana, New York residents are more likely to use illegal drugs than Americans overall (9.1 percent versus 8.5 percent).
  • In 2006, a total of 452,000 people reported using Cocaine in New York. (The figure includes those that did and who did not seek treatment).
  • Heroin continues to be easily available in New York and has had a direct impact upon demand and supply in New Jersey.
  • Current information indicates that upstate New York has a growing Heroin problem. 57,409 people were admitted to drug rehab for Heroin addiction in 2010.
  • Heroin was the most often cited drug of choice, in New York, for those entering addiction treatment in 2010.
  • Marijuana is the most often abused illegal substance used in New York with 54,070 people were admitted for drug treatment in 2010.
  • Since 2002, Cocaine and painkillers abuse has increased among specific groups of New York residents. Cocaine abuse increased most dramatically among men, more than doubling to 5.8 percent in 2006 and 2007. Painkillers abuse also increased within men to 6.5 percent and doubled within adults ages 35 years and older to 3.7 percent in 2006 and 2007.
  • Cocaine was the most commonly cited drug in ER visits for all age groups, with 425 Cocaine related visits for every 100,000 New York residents, representing more than half of all drug related ER visits.
  • Since 2004, the rate of ER visits with reports of Marijuana more than doubled to 173 Marijuana related visits for every 100,000 New York residents in 2007.
  • In 2006, Opioids were specifically identified in 46 percent and Cocaine in 47 percent of all drug related hospitalizations, in New York.
  • An estimated 1.5 percent of all New York City deaths are caused by unintentional drug overdose