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Tennessee Drug Statistics and Facts

  • Tennessee is a transit section for drugs, especially Cocaine, Marijuana and Methamphetamine, destined for other states.
  • Overall, Tennessee Access to Recovery, consumers saw drastic reductions in their drug and alcohol abuse, with alcohol abuse falling from 38.8 percent at admission to 2.9 percent at discharge and from 41.1 percent at admission to 12.3 percent at the 6 month follow-up.
  • Although, in Tennessee, Marijuana was on average the most commonly reported substance at admission, used by 26.8 percent of the discharge population and 27.6 percent of the 6 month follow-up population, only 1.4 percent of consumers at discharge and 2.3 percent of consumers at the 6 month follow-up reported using Marijuana.
  • The number of drug overdose deaths (accidental, undetermined, suicide, or homicide), in Tennessee increased from 422 in 2001 to 1,059 in 2010.
  • The number of drug overdose deaths, in 2010, represents an increase of 250 percent over the 10 year period, in Tennessee.
  • Abuse of prescription drugs is the number 1 drug problem for Tennessee residents receiving state funded treatment services
  • In 2010, there were 11,717 Tennessee residents admitted to drug and. Of those admitted to addiction treatment, 67.0 percent were male, and 33.0 percent were female.
  • Frequency of drug abuse declined sharply for the overall Tennessee Access to Recovery population. Daily use dropped from 8.9 percent at admission to 0.3 percent at discharge and from 9.6 percent at admission to 1.6 percent at the 6 month follow-up.
  • Incidence of arrest declined significantly from admission to treatment, in Tennessee, falling from 12.2 percent for both populations at entrance to 1.1 percent at discharge and 4.0 percent at the 6-month follow-up.
  • According to the 2006 National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services, there were 195 drug and alcohol facilities in Tennessee. Of these facilities, 147 (75 percent) were private nonprofit, and 35 (18 percent) were private for-profit.
  • Tennessee has more Cocaine-related treatment admissions and federal penalties than any other drug.
  • Approximately 250,000 Tennessee residents, age 12 and older reported abusing prescription Opioids, in 2009.
  • In Tennessee, the percentage of people classifying prescription drug as their main substance of abuse increased from 5 percent in 1999 to 23 percent in 2009.
  • The ranking of the top 3 drugs named as a primary substance of abuse also changed dramatically from 1999 to 2009. Opioid abuse in Tennessee is greater than abuse of Crack/Cocaine or Marijuana.
  • While 5 percent of Tennesseans (12 years old and older) reported abusing prescription drugs, almost 13 percent of Tennesseans ages 18 to 25 reported abusing prescription Opioids in the past year.
  • In 2007 and 2008, Tennessee ranked 1st among all states for past-year non-medical use of painkillers among persons age 26 or older.
  • In 2010, there were 4,064 Tennessee residents admitted to treatment for alcohol as their main drug and 4,931 people admitted with alcohol addiction with a secondary substance.
  • In Tennessee, 1,099 people were admitted to substance abuse treatment for smoking Cocaine in 2010 while 338 who ingested Cocaine by other ways went to treatment the same year.
  • The percentage of Tennessee youths with a drug abuse problem entering State custody through the juvenile justice system rose from 5 percent to nearly 11 percent, according to the Tennessee Department of Children's Services (Sept. 2011).
  • As a direct consequence of drug use, 1,035 individuals died in Tennessee in 2007. That is compared to the number of persons who died in Tennessee from car accidents (1,303) and firearms (924) in the same year.