Washington, DC– This week Chairman and Co-Chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), introduced a resolution designating the week of February 10-16, 2008 as National Drug Prevention and Education Week. The resolution encourages communities to carry out programs and activities to educate parents and youth about the dangers of drug use.
“We’ve come a long way in combating drug use in this country – in large part because of the hard work of so many talented professionals in the prevention and treatment fields – but we still have a ways to go,” said Sen. Biden, also Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs. “The rates of illegal drug use among teens and adults remain too high, and the abuse of over-the-counter and prescription drugs poses a serious public health concern. National Drug Prevention and Education Week will go a long way to support education and prevention efforts to help stop drug use before it starts.”
“Fighting drug abuse requires parents, schools and communities to work together to provide a clear and consistent anti-drug message,” Sen. Grassley said. “We must continue to provide community anti-drug coalitions the opportunity to promote drug education and prevention and to help encourage kids to make healthy choices.”
Although the number of high school age children using illegal drugs over the past several years has declined, the use of some illegal drugs like ecstasy (MDMA) has increased and the overall rate of illegal drug use among persons aged 12 and older remains a problem. The threat of illegal drugs is not the only concern. In recent years, the abuse of over-the-counter drugs has skyrocketed with nearly 6 percent of 12th graders having used over-the-counter cough and cold medications in the past year for the purpose of getting high. Moreover, data show that abuse of prescription medicines is a threat that has not declined in recent years. One in ten 12th graders has reported non-medical use of the powerful painkiller Vicodin within the past year, and abuse rates of other powerful narcotics are similarly troubling. These problems do not simply pose serious health risks, but they are also closely linked to low educational achievement and increased risk of illegal activity and crime.
National Drug Prevention and Education Week encourages parents, youth, schools and communities to carry out prevention and education activities to reduce and stop drug use. Over 20 years of research has demonstrated that prevention and intervention, designed and tested to reduce risk and enhance protective factors, can help children at every step along their developmental path, from early childhood into young adulthood. The more successful adolescent drug prevention is, the fewer associated consequences of drugs use will result—including the more than $500 billion in societal costs associated with drug and alcohol use.
“On behalf of our 5,000 members, I applaud Senators Biden and Grassley for focusing national attention on the critical role that drug prevention and education—especially when combined with comprehensive community coalitions—plays in keeping kids drug-free,” remarked General Arthur T. Dean, Chairman and CEO of Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA).
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In October, Sens. Biden and Grassley introduced the Dextromethorphan Abuse Reduction Act (S. 2274) to curb the alarming rise in medicine abuse, including teens’ misuse of cough and cold medicines containing Dextromethorphan (DXM). In addition, they authored an article published in the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America Newsletter (Spring/Summer 2007) in which they wrote about the rising use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs among teens. To read their op-ed, click here