October 9, 2007

Alarmingly high rates of substance use and abuse among teens

By Assemblymember Jim Beall
Special to the Times

As chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and as parent, the issue of substance abuse among teens is of special importance to me.

California is in a state of crisis in regard to substance abuse treatment for teens. There is a clear pattern among teens, as they begin to use drugs earlier, use harder drugs and participate in other associated high-risk behaviors. An estimated 188,000 adolescents (ages 12-17) in the state of California have a substance- abuse problem requiring treatment. However, less than 10 percent or (17,000) of these adolescents received substance abuse treatment in 2006.

We know that youth are using harder drugs at earlier ages, especially young girls. The earlier teens begin abusing illegal substances, the more likely it is that they will have substance abuse problems in their adult lives. According to a recent Kaiser study, the average age youth tries alcohol and/or drugs at 11 1/2 years.

Girls are at a greater risk for substance abuse, especially involving alcohol, stimulants, party drugs, sedatives, oxycontin, cocaine and heroin. Not only are girls abusing alcohol and drugs at earlier ages, research shows that they often suffer consequences, including unplanned pregnancies and an emotional toll beyond that experienced by boys.

Despite the alarmingly high rates of substance use and abuse among adolescents and teenagers, there very few programs designed for youth. Publicly funded treatment programs are few and far between, especially outside of the criminal justice system, and, the majority of private youth treatment programs do not offer adequate coverage for substance abuse disorders.

California is suffering from a lack of funding for such treatment and an inability to effectively coordinate its services so that young people are provided with the best possible standard of care. For youth substance abuse services to be truly effective, programs must be integrated with all other social service agencies, including foster care, schooling, health services and the criminal justice system.

So far, the inability to coordinate these systems has been one of the biggest problems for those attempting to address youth substance abuse. In addition to improving coordination, we need to increase awareness of substance abuse among the youth population and its consequences, and increase mandatory health insurance parity coverage for adolescent substance abuse treatment as well as find permanent sources of funding that are dedicated to this sole purpose. It is essential that we begin to put measures in place that will facilitate the accomplishment of these goals.

My colleagues, who sit on the Select Committee of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, and I, as chair, are working on this crisis to help our youth. We are committed to developing an effective adolescent alcohol and drug prevention and treatment system statewide.

On Nov. 1, the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Select Committee will convene a hearing in Los Angeles to discuss what kind of policies and practices the state should consider when addressing the drug and alcohol crisis among our youth. If you are interested in the discussion or would like to address the Committee, please attend our upcoming hearing.

Information regarding upcoming hearings, as well as agendas and meeting materials are available on my Web site www.assembly.ca.gov/beall.