Rising Stimulant Abuse Complicates Opioid Crisis

(Winter 2017) Justifiably, the opioid epidemic took center-stage in alcohol/drug discussions in 2017. However, as reports of both death tolls and efforts to stem the tide of opioid overdose fatalities continue to pour out, new use patterns may be signaling yet another storm on the horizon. Some areas of the country, including Florida, Maine and patches of the West, are noting an upswing in both arrests and overdose casualties due to methamphetamine and cocaine. Also on the rise is the number of stimulant prescriptions being written by healthcare professionals. The pattern here mimics that of opioids, in which users begin with prescriptions for the drugs and then later turn to illegal means of procuring them.

Little action has been taken regarding the potential of a stimulant epidemic by legislators and other officials, although the upswing is on the radar of treatment providers and researchers. Experts warn that the rise of stimulant use is significant and that the trend must be addressed now before it reaches a fever pitch. However, instead of viewing it as the “next wave,” one researcher explained that many users either knowingly or unknowingly simultaneously use more than one drug. Cocaine and opioids (such as heroin or fentanyl) used together is an increasingly popular combination, and overdose deaths due to these drugs have risen sharply since 2010. If stimulant use continues to soar, this could pose yet another issue for treatment professionals; at this time no drugs are approved to assist with stimulant addiction and nothing is in development that would reach the market soon.

A report written in 2017 by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) points out that cocaine availability has reached a height not seen since at least 2007, and the growth in American cocaine usage is the largest since at least 2009. If the current market status quo continues, the DEA estimates that cocaine use will continue to rise through 2018 and possibly beyond.

Close to home, Youngstown’s Mahoning Valley area is noticing a large increase in crystal methamphetamine, cocaine and crack use. Law enforcement there has confiscated approximately five kilograms recently, which exceeds what was collected in the past three years combined.

The leader of the area’s Drug Task Force said that the resurgence of stimulants is caused by a domino effect: states in the U.S. are legalizing marijuana, which results in less money flowing to the Mexican cartels. To increase revenue, the cartels are smuggling higher quantities of crystal methamphetamine and cocaine into the United States.

But it’s not just the U.S. that is seeing a surge in stimulant demand. Our neighbor to the north is experiencing an uptick in methamphetamine use as well. An addiction consultant in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan revealed that three in ten residents at a Saskatoon treatment center are solely there for a problem with methamphetamine. Some users become quickly addicted to the drug, which is said to be readily available in the area.

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