New York Alcohol and Drug Treatment Programs

Opioids, alcohol, and many other intoxicating and mind altering substances have been plaguing the residents of New York for many years. Additionally, many people have lost family members, friends, and colleagues to drug overdoses.

To counter these problems, New York has comprehensive service networks to treat and prevent substance use disorders within the state. Even so, its population continues grappling with relatively high rates of alcohol and drug abuse. Every year, in fact, many people lose their lives as a result of abusing substances like opioids.

Statistics on Substance Abuse in New York

According to the NSDUH - or the National Survey on Drug Use and Health - for 2015 and 2016, there is detailed information available on the trends of alcohol and drug use in every state in America.

Healthcare professionals and policymakers use this information to design appropriately applicable treatment and prevention programs to reduce and/or completely eliminate the number of people affected by substance use disorders.

The information gathered from this survey for New York includes the following data:

• The residents reported that they had engaged in binge drinking at least once within the month prior to the study at rates of 27.35 %, or about 4.197 million people
• The percentage of New York residents above the age of 18 who reported using heroin the year before the survey was at 0.45 percent - or about 68000 people
• Respondents in the state reported relatively high rates of illicit substance abuse the month before the survey; to be more exact, over 1.7 million people 18 years and older stated that they had abused at least one drug - including marijuana; this number represents 11.41% of the entire adult population of New York
• Residents 18 years and older reported that they had used cocaine; the rate was put at 2.55 percent - which equates to about 392000 people
• On the other hand, 3.98 percent of the adults in the state said that they had abused prescription pain relief medications - which equates to about 610000 people

In spite of the wide variety of addiction treatment and rehabilitation resources that exist in New York, the rates of death that are related to opioid drugs continue rising by the day. In fact, the state lost 3638 lives to opioid overdoses in 2016 - a rate that was 32.4 percent higher than the year before.

It is now thought that the widespread distribution and availability of fentanyl - a potent synthetic opioid drug - is the major driver for this surge in the rates of overdose in the state.

Luckily, doctors and first responders can reverse the adverse effects of fentanyl using Narcan (naloxone). However, since this drug needs to be administered as soon as someone starts experiencing an opioid related overdose for it to work effectively and successfully, many people lose their lives before they report their overdose emergency too late.

That said, SAMHSA - or the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration - reported that New York rehab centers admitted 281,780 people in 2014. Of this number, 26.7 percent were male while 73.3 percent were male.

Commonly Abused Substances in New York

In the period running from 2012 to 2013, 2.8 percent of people above the age of 12 in New York reported that they were dependent on illicit substances - a percentage that equates to about 462000 people. Of this number, however, only about 12.8 percent received ongoing treatment and rehabilitation services to help them overcome their abuse of and dependence on these illicit drugs.

Today, marijuana, heroin, and cocaine are the most abused drugs in the state. A recent survey measured the consequences and increase of opiate analgesics and released the following information relating to the commonly abused substances in New York:

1. Alcohol

The Behavioral Health Barometers released by SAMHSA through the NSDUH for 2012 and 2013 reported that 6.65 percent of the population of New York above the age of 12 was dependent on alcohol. This percentage equated to about 1.1 million people and it was roughly the same as the total national average for the same condition.

Of this number, 50393 checked into addiction treatment centers seeking ongoing rehabilitation services for their alcohol use disorder. An additional 59864 people sought similar services for their AUD with another secondary substance use disorder.

From 2009 to 2013, however, only about 5.3 percent of people above the age of 12 struggling with alcohol abuse and dependence received the treatment and rehabilitation services that they needed.

2. Cocaine

In 2010, about 14770 people checked into rehab centers in New York for smoking cocaine. An additional 8461 people enrolled into similar facilities for abusing this drug through other modes of administration.

3. Heroin

The same year, New York residents reported using heroin in excess amounts. In fact, this was the most commonly mentioned substance of abuse reported by drug users who were receiving rehabilitation services in the state. In 2014, for instance, a total of 79295 people checked into rehab facilities to be treated for heroin use and addiction.

4. Marijuana

The NSSATS report for 2014 showed that a total of 42289 individuals received ongoing treatment and rehabilitation for being addicted to marijuana. The state legislature passed the Compassionate Care Act in 2014 to create medical marijuana programs that has not yet been implemented fully.

5. Prescription Drugs

Opiate use not related to heroin led to the greatest enrollment into rehab centers in New York. In 2014, for instance, a total of 18405 people checked into these facilities for abusing prescription opioids. However, more than 25000 people received treatment for all types of prescription medications.

Substance Abuse and Criminal Justice Interconnections in New York

The Depart of Health for New York released a report in 2012 showing the rates of substance use disorders and mental illness in the Big Apple - New York City - only. In this report, more than 42 percent of those who were incarcerated had a substance use disorder. Another 33 percent reported having serious mental illness, while a combined total of 50 percent had both conditions - or co-occurring substance use disorders and mental health conditions.

On the other hand, the Department of Correctional Services reported in 2010 that more than 83 percent of the populations of the state's prisons required urgent treatment and rehabilitation services for substance use disorders and addictions.

Fatalities and Injuries Linked to Substance Abuse in New York

The Office of the President's ONDCP report for 2009 showed that New York lost 1797 lives as a result of ongoing substance abuse. This is in stark comparison to the 1265 lives it lost to motor car accidents.

On the other hand, the Department Of Motor Vehicles released a summary of alcohol related motor car accidents and crashes in 2014. This report showed that drunk driving was a major problem in New York.

For instance, a total of 10623 people were involved in traffic accidents that year. Of this number, more than 7464 had consumed alcohol before getting behind a wheel. Similarly, 152 out of every 163 drunk drivers lost their lives.

Addiction Treatment and Prevention in New York

The Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services in New York currently has a number of major outreach programs working across the state. These include:

• #ReversingtheStigma
• #FentanylKills
• #CombatAddiction

The agency tracks the indicators of substance abuse and addiction across the state and collects data relating to rehabilitation and treatment services and programs. It shows that every year close to 260,000 residents get treated for substance use disorders at OASAS certified rehab facilities in New York.

On the other hand, lawmakers in the state have been trying to combat the deadly opioid crisis. They, for instance, passed legislation designed to limit the initial number of opioid prescriptions to a total of 7 day. This was to try and reduce the total amount of opioid drugs prescribed for pain management by New York physicians.

New York has also created 911 Good Samaritan laws designed to protect people who contact emergency services in New York while trying to report incidents of a drug and/or alcohol overdose. If you make such a report, therefore, you would be protected from being arrested for:

• Sharing medications and drugs
• Possessing controlled drugs and substances that are up to a total of 8 ounces
• Possessing any type of drug paraphernalia
• Possessing any quantity of marijuana
• Possessing alcohol in situations involving underage drinking

The state also has a wide variety of addiction treatment and rehabilitation centers designed to help people overcome their chemical, physical, and psychological dependence on mind altering and intoxicating substances.

This is because very few people can recover from their substance use disorder unless they go through a professional rehabilitation program. Through such treatment, they can go on to lead meaningful and productive lives undeterred by mind altering substances.

To conclude, if you have been struggling with drugs and alcohol, you should enroll into one of these centers to get the help you need to restore your lifestyle and stay away from these harmful and sometimes fatal substances.