Summary
“The cost to society of drug abuse and drug addiction is prodigious in terms of both the direct costs and indirect costs associated with secondary medical events, social problems, and loss of productivity. In the United States alone, illicit drug use and addiction cost society 223 billion per year in 2012, and nicotine addiction costs society $155 billion. In terms of health burden, alcohol and tobacco use are in the top 10 greatest risk factors for loss of years to disease and disability.”
Although these are older numbers, I appreciate a textbook that begins with the scope of substance abuse and addiction as a public health issue. Time after time, one of the biggest takeaways from the history of substance abuse policies is that it is extremely preventable and treatable. In most drugs and most people, the time between someone’s first use as a maladaptive coping mechanism and the point of compulsive use is very far. It’s why it’s so frustrating to see institutions hack away at highly effective programs for short-term spending cuts in exchange for long-term crisis spending.
“Sound arguments have been made to support the hypothesis that addictions are similar to other chronic relapsing disorders, such as diabetes, asthma, and hypertension, in their chronic relapsing nature and treatment efficacy.”
Medications and therapeutic interventions can be effective at targeting symptoms and increasing sustained abstinence, but we have nothing we could call a cure or a strong equivalent to insulin for diabetes or an inhaled corticosteroids for asthma.