North Carolina

North Carolina has its fair share of drug abuse and addiction problems; meth and meth labs in particular. The El Paso Intelligence Center’s National Seizure System reported that there was a significant increase in the number of meth labs seized between 2007 and 2009. In 2007, 153 incidents of meth lab seizures were reported while in 2009, 202 incidents of meth lab seizures were reported; a 32% increase. A recent survey showed that nearly 8% of North Carolina residents reported past-month use of illicit drugs. At the time of the survey the national average was 8% as well. Also, 3.51% of North Carolina residents reported using an illicit drug other than marijuana in the past month (the national average was 3.58 percent). �'�'Additionally, North Carolina’s rate of drug-induced deaths is on par with the national average. 1,125 persons died in the state as a direct consequence of drug use, abuse or addiction problems in 2007. An interesting comparison is the number of people died from motor vehicle accidents (1,818) and firearms (1,116) in the same year. North Carolina drug-induced deaths (12.4 per 100,000 population) were similar to the national rate (12.7 per 100,000).

The North Carolina Controlled Substances Reporting System became operational in 2007 under the North Carolina Controlled Substances Reporting System Act, which was enacted in 2005. The System is under the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services. It monitors controlled substances in Schedules II, III, IV, and V. The data are collected weekly; in 2008, an estimated 17,000,000 prescription records were collected. Data from the United State Drug Enforcement Agency during 2011 shows that there were at least 2,846 cases of prescription drug theft and loss reported in North Carolina between the years 2000-2010. This is despite strict security and additional controlling and maintenance safeguards. The total amount can be broken down into nearly 285 cases a year, a majority of them involving pharmacies (60%).

Drug rehab admissions in North Carolina cite marijuana as the primary drug of abuse clients list. While marijuana is the number one drug cited during drug rehab admissions in North Carolina, cocaine addiction admissions comes in second, other opiates third, other/unknown forth, heroin fifth, stimulants sixth, sedatives seventh, tranquilizers eighth, inhalants ninth, hallucinogens tenth and PCP eleventh. Residents of North Carolina struggle with their drug addiction problems and more often than not, like the rest of the drug addicted individuals across the country, do not get the help they need to stop using. Enrolling in a drug rehab program is the key to ending drug addiction. Rehabilitation programs provide addicted individuals with a safe place to get off drugs, address the underlying issues that drove them to use and find new healthy ways of handling life that no longer involve turning to drugs as a solution. When the recovered person completes drug rehab they will have gone through one of the most difficult, yet rewarding, process of their life. Successfully recovering from addiction and living the life one is meant to be living, drug-free and happy is the ultimate goal of all successful and effective drug rehab programs.