Effects of drug abuse on society

Letter of Concern: Effects of Drug Abuse on Society
Dear Sir/ Madam,
I write to you to express my concerns about the drugs and addiction issue in our society today. The situation, sir, is so dire in some places that continuing to overlook the situation is most certain to bring the society as a whole to its knees economic wise. A look into the issue clearly calls for urgent action to be taken to stem the practice.
The cost of drug abuse together with addiction to the nation is too high and may get to unsustainable levels if not checked. A huge percentage of admissions to hospitals consist of patients that have alcohol and drug abuse disorders resulting mostly from addiction. Shockingly, almost 20 % of costs for hospitals in Medicaid and a quarter of funds allocated to Medicare and spent on inpatient care go to substance abuse treatments. Also, looking at our prisons, about 70% of individual inmates have once been regular drug users. The state prison population growth is accounted for by up to more than a third by drug offenders. Worse still is that this same group of individuals has contributed an 80% growth in the prisons population since 1985. It can be seen that drug abuse is the number one cause for offences committed by inmates and is also highly costly to the national budget.
As Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse puts it, “ Drug abuse and addiction are a major burden to society; economic costs alone are estimated to exceed half a trillion dollars annually in the United States, including health, crime-related costs, and losses in productivity. However, as staggering as these numbers are, they provide a limited perspective of the devastating consequences of this disease.” This picture shows how other aspects of the society can suffer underdevelopment due to drugs. The drugs problem affects every age group in the society including children who stay with their parents who are struggling with their addiction.
Over time, studies by scientists on drug abuse were shadowed by myths. Drug addicts have been thought of as morally flawed and not having willpower. This view majorly shaped society’s response toward drug abuse. Instead of treating it as a health problem, it was taken to be a moral failing. As such, punitive criminal justice was the strategy of choice in curbing it. This was at the expense of therapeutic actions that are preventative and having a base in public health understanding regarding addiction and recovery. Recently done research has identified environmental, psychological and biological factors contributing to addiction development and progression.
It is evident that the drug issue is one that should be treated with urgency in tackling. Majorly what lacks is the proper view of the problem. As outlined above, society’s view of addiction as a moral incapacity should change. Addicts and users of drugs need to be viewed by society as normal beings having a problem that they can be helped out. This calls for education of the society on this whole issue. I therefore call on you to at least ensure that efforts are made to educate the society in general about this issue if not embedding drug education into the national school curriculum.

Yours sincerely,
Work Cited
Denise Kandel, ” Adolescent marijuana use: Role of parents and peers”, Science 181: 1067-108 1,
1973.
Richard Blum et al., Horatio Alger’s Children: The Role of the Family in the Origin and Prevention of Drug Risk (San Francisco, Jossey-Bass, 1972).