Drug Treatment

Rachel Porter

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, more than 1.5 million people entered drug treatment in 1998. Nearly half of these entries were for alcohol treatment, while the majority of the remaining entries were for heroin or other opiates, crack, or powder cocaine, or marijuana. Two-thirds of the people who enter treatment are men, and about 60 percent are white. While the age at which people enter drug treatment varies considerably, the average age of entry was thirty-three. To serve the diverse needs of clients, drug treatment takes several forms. It can be intensive, such as a residential program (e.g., Phoenix House), or more limited. It can be a part of a criminal justice sentence, or an individual can enter a drug treatment program independent of judicial intervention. Opiate use emerged as a significant social problem in the United States during the first half of the nineteenth century. The ...

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