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New Mexico Drug Statistics and Facts

  • There were 10,018 people who entered drug and alcohol addiction treatment in the year 2009, in New Mexico. Of that number, 65.8 percent were males and 32.8 percent were females.
  • The number of drug and alcohol rehabilitation in New Mexico has remained constant over the last few years with 120 centers in operation as of 2006. 31 treatment facilities offer some form of residential treatment and ten offer opiate addiction treatment.
  • Drug only admissions increased from 10 percent in 1992 to 22 percent in 2005. However, the percentage of unmet treatment needs for drug addiction decreased to below the national average. Unmet treatment needs for alcohol addiction remained above the national average.
  • For the year 2007 and 2008, New Mexico ranked 1st among all states for illegal drug dependence among age group12 to 17 years of age.
  • According to 2009 States in Brief report, the number of people, in New Mexico, admitted for addiction treatment with psychological problems has doubled since 1992.
  • New Mexico ranked the highest in the nation for underage drinking and for use of Marijuana for children below the age of 13.
  • In 2009, 3,689 people entered alcohol rehabilitation for alcohol being the main substance of abuse, in New Mexico. An additional 1,242 people were admitted for alcohol addiction mixed with a secondary drug of abuse.
  • Approximately 75 percent of all those admitted for alcohol addiction (including alcohol with a secondary drug) were male, in New Mexico.
  • In New Mexico, the largest demographic going into treatment for alcohol addiction was between the ages of 26 to 30.
  • According to the National Survey of Drug Use and Health, New Mexico's rates for illegal and alcohol drug use has stayed at or above the national average for the year 2006.
  • In a survey published by New Mexico Human Services Department, it was stated that around 25,000 people are addicted to Heroin and other Opiates.
  • In 2009, there were 559 people admitted for Cocaine/Crack abuse. This number included those that smoked the drug and those who ingested Cocaine by other means. New Mexico ranked among the highest in the nation for Cocaine use among 12 to 17 year olds.
  • Heroin is on the rise across New Mexico due to the rising cost of Opiates on the street. In 2009, 778 people entered a drug rehabilitation for Heroin addiction.
  • In 2009, 658 people were admitted for Marijuana addiction treatment in New Mexico. Marijuana abuse among 12 to 17 year olds during 2006 placed New Mexico within the highest ranking states in the nation.
  • There has been a significant increase in the number of admissions for Meth addiction treatment, in New Mexico, though the correct numbers have not yet been reported. In 2009, 695 people were admitted for addiction to amphetamines.
  • In New Mexico, 19.6% (34,000) of adolescents used alcohol in the last month, and 12.5% (22,000) engaged in binge drinking.
  • There were 1,958 admissions, in New Mexico, for addiction treatment for other drugs in 2009. The number of people admitted for addiction to other drugs like PCP and hallucinogens were not as serious as those admitted for sedative abuse or inhalant addiction.
  • In 2007, drug related deaths equaled 23.9 per 100,000 compared to the national rate of 12.7 per 100,000, in New Mexico.
  • Drug abuse led to 471 deaths in 2007 compared to 379 deaths due to car accidents and 295 deaths from firearms incidents in 2007. New Mexico drug related deaths equaled 23.9 per 100,000 in comparison to the national rate of 12.7 per 100,000 in 2007.
  • Methamphetamine arrests and confiscations, in New Mexico, remained low for 2007, but while the numbers of Cocaine and Marijuana confiscations were lower during that same year, they were significantly higher than Meth related seizures.