January 25, 2002

Cocaine Treatment Admissions Decrease: 1993-1999

In Brief
  • Cocaine treatment admission rates were generally highest in the middle Atlantic and some southern States

  • Trends indicated stable or declining treatment admission rates for primary cocaine abuse in most States
Admissions to publicly funded substance abuse treatment facilities for cocaine abuse declined by 23 percent between 1993 and 1999, from 136 to 104 per 100,000 persons aged 12 or older. Cocaine was responsible for 14 percent of the 1.6 million admissions in 1999 to these facilities. Cocaine and opiates (at 15 percent) were the leading illicit drugs responsible for treatment admissions.

Cocaine treatment admission rates were generally highest in the middle Atlantic and some southern States. Trends indicated stable or declining admission rates for primary cocaine abuse in most States.

For this report, cocaine treatment admission rates per 100,000 persons aged 12 or older were calculated for each State for 1993 to 1999 using the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS). Cocaine treatment admissions include both smoked cocaine (crack) and cocaine used by other routes of administration. Crack cocaine treatment admissions accounted for about three quarters of all cocaine treatment admissions annually from 1993 to 1999.
Figure 1. Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates per 100,000 Persons Aged 12 or Older: 
1993, 1996, 1999*




Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates: 1993
In 1993, the treatment admission rate for primary cocaine abuse in the United States was 136 admissions per 100,000 persons aged 12 or older. Five States had rates of 207 or more per 100,000, while 53 percent of reporting States had rates of less than 114 per 100,000.

Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates: 1996
By 1996, the treatment admission rate for primary cocaine abuse in the United States had decreased by 10 percent, to 122 per 100,000 persons aged 12 or older. Five States had rates over 207 per 100,000, while 25 States (54 percent of reporting States) had rates of less than 114 per 100,000.



Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates: 1999
By 1999, the treatment admission rate for primary cocaine abuse in the United States as a whole had decreased to 104 per 100,000 persons aged 12 or older. Two States had rates of 207 per 100,000 or more. Sixty-seven percent of reporting States had rates of less than 114 per 100,000.

1993

Figure 1, 1993 map showing Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates per 100,000 Persons Aged 12 or Older

1996

Figure 1, 1996 map showing Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates per 100,000 Persons Aged 12 or Older

1999

Figure 1, 1999 map showing Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates per 100,000 Persons Aged 12 or Older

Admissions per 100,000 Aged 12 or Older

Source: 1999 SAMHSA Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS).

Figure 2. Changes in Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates: 1993-1999

Changes in Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates: 1993-1999
Cocaine treatment admission rates decreased in 63 percent of reporting States between 1993 and 1999. Rates decreased over this period by 35 percent or more in 13 States, and by 10 to 34 percent in another 11 States. Some of the largest rate decreases were reported in States that had high rates in 1993, such as Louisiana, Maryland, and Massachusetts (Table 1).

Increases in cocaine treatment rates were seen in some States, primarily in the Midwest. The largest increases were seen in Arkansas, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Indiana, ranging from 76 to 246 percent.

Figure 2, Map showing changes in Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates between 1993 and 1999

Percent Change

Source: 1999 SAMHSA Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS).
Table 1. States with High Cocaine Treatment Admission Rates and Large Percentage Changes in Rates: 1993-1999
Figure Notes:
*The map categories are based on the median, 75th, and 90th percentiles of the range of 1994 cocaine treatment admission rates. Dark blue indicates States with rates at or above the level of the 1994 90th percentile (i.e., 207 admissions per 100,000 population aged 12 or older); medium blue indicates rates from the 1994 75th to 89th percentiles; light blue indicates rates from the 1994 50th to 74th percentiles; and white indicates States with rates below the median 1994 admission rate (i.e., 114 admissions per 100,000 population aged 12 or older). Crosshatching indicates States for which data were incomplete or not submitted for a given year.

The Drug and Alcohol Services Information System (DASIS) is an integrated data system maintained by the Office of Applied Studies, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). One component of DASIS is the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), a national-level dataset comprising State administrative data from treatment facilities receiving public funds. The TEDS system includes records for some 1.6 million substance abuse treatment admissions annually. TEDS records represent admissions rather than individuals, as a person may be admitted to treatment more than once.

The DASIS Report is prepared by the Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA; Synectics for Management Decisions, Inc., Arlington, Virginia; and RTI, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.

Information and data for this issue are based on data reported to TEDS through April 16, 2001.

Access the latest TEDS reports at:
www.oas.samhsa.gov/dasis.htm

Access the latest TEDS public use files at:
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/SAMHDA-SERIES/00056.xml
Cocaine Admissions per 100,00 Aged 12 or Older Percent Change
1993 1996 1999 1993-1999
United States 136.0 121.6 104.2 -23
Georgia 176.7 110.6 69.0 -69
Massachusetts 224.8 203.5 115.5 -49
Louisiana 240.9 141.6 133.6 -45
New Jersey 164.2 140.3 93.3 -43
Kansas 188.6 142.7 110.1 -42
Alaska 119.5 163.5 77.1 -36
Maryland 273.2 222.6 176.3 -35
Michigan 176.9 207.3 120.2 -32
South Carolina 151.9 163.3 120.9 -20
Florida 189.4 142.0 155.0 -18
New York 265.1 257.5 222.6 -16
Delaware 158.5 161.3 203.2 +28
Ohio 126.6 183.1 163.6 +29
Missouri 126.4 135.2 169.4 +34

Source: 1999 SAMHSA Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS).

The DASIS Report is published periodically by the Office of Applied Studies, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission from SAMHSA. Additional copies of this report may be downloaded from  

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