More than ten million people call Los Angeles County home, and out of those, around 740,000 are dealing with drug addiction. Sadly, the number of deaths attributed to drug addiction in the area has been steadily rising: 830 people died of an accidental drug overdose in the county in 2019, but that number rose to more than 1,500 deaths from the same cause in 2020.
- Annual Overview: Patients in Publicly Funded Treatment Programs in Los Angeles County
- Substance Abuse in Los Angeles County
- Accidental Drug Overdose Deaths in Los Angeles County During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Statewide Needs Assessment and Planning Report
- Drug Overdose Deaths Rise Sharply Among Homeless Population in Los Angeles County
- How Does California’s Addiction Rate Fare Against the Rest of the World?
Any substance capable of inducing a sense of euphoria or altered consciousness can be abused. People often think of illegal drugs when they think of drug addiction, but many legal substances are also abused. For example, alcohol is a legal substance that is often abused and is a drug to which people become both emotionally and physically addicted. Prescription drug abuse is an issue across the country as well. Most people who struggle with prescription drug addiction were initially prescribed these drugs by their doctors. Narcotics are a type of drug that can be legally prescribed. For example, narcotics are often prescribed to people following surgery. However, they’re also wildly abused. Abuse of narcotics can lead to symptoms like sleepiness, flushing of the neck and face, and trouble breathing. People who become addicted to prescription pain medications or any type of narcotic may then become addicted to fentanyl. Fentanyl is an extremely potent narcotic, and Los Angeles is dealing with an epidemic of fentanyl abuse.
- What Makes Los Angeles Drug Abuse So Notorious?
- Substance Use and Mental Disorders in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana Metro Area
- Los Angeles County Sentinel Community Site Drug Use Patterns and Trends
- LA Organization Hopes to Reduce Drug Epidemic Worsened by Pandemic
- Fentanyl Awareness
- The Social Geography of Drug Use in Metropolitan Los Angeles
- Overdose Epidemic Plagues California: Fentanyl Is Driving Uptick in Deaths
- Los Angeles High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area
Amphetamines fall into both legal and illegal categories. Adults and children with ADHD have amphetamine prescriptions, and that is a legal use of these drugs. Other forms of amphetamines are illegal, and addiction to them is a problem for Los Angeles citizens of every age and socioeconomic status. Meth is a type of amphetamine, and currently, Los Angeles is in the midst of a meth addiction crisis. Meth has been a significant problem across the United States for decades. However, in Los Angeles, the problem worsened when a new type known as black tar was introduced into the marketplace. Not only was this type of meth highly addictive, but the people selling it also figured out how to streamline their operations. It became possible to call up a black tar dealer and have the drug delivered straight to the user, much in the same way people might order pizza and have it delivered to their front door. More recently, another type of meth has risen in popularity that induces feelings of paranoia and mimics the symptoms of schizophrenia. Meth use is a particular problem in the Los Angeles unhoused population. Cocaine, crack, ecstasy, and other types of street drugs are also both illegal and dangerous.
- The New Brand of Meth That’s Fueling LA’s Homelessness Crisis
- Methamphetamine Use in Los Angeles County Adults
- Alcohol Abuse and Illegal Drug Use Among Los Angeles County Trauma Patients: Prevalence and Evaluation of Single-Item Screener
- The Moral Crisis of Skid Row, LA’s Most Notorious Neighborhood
The Los Angeles area has many different types of rehab centers available, offering around 430 treatment programs. These include around 330 outpatient programs, 80 programs that offer some degree of hospitalization, and more than 60 inpatient programs. Since the Los Angeles population is so diverse, it makes sense that the range of programs for drug and alcohol dependency is equally diverse. There are specialized programs for LGBTQIA+ individuals, programs for different economic needs, and programs focused on various types of addiction. There are also many programs that specifically target drugs that are abused regularly by people in the area, including fentanyl and methamphetamines.
- Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse
- Substance Use Prevention and Treatment Program
- Los Angeles Drug Rehab
- Los Angeles Addiction Statistics and Sober Living Guide
- Substance Abuse Service Helpline Brochure
- Substance Abuse in California
- Substance Abuse Prevention and Control: Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Cultural Competency Strategic Plan
- Substance Use Service and Bed Availability Tool
- Safe Med LA: Los Angeles County Prescription Drug Abuse Coalition
- Los Angeles Rehab Guide
Jeffrey Nadrich
Jeffrey Nadrich is a nationally-recognized California plaintiff’s personal injury attorney. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley and UC Hastings College of the Law. He has successfully represented thousands of injury clients over the last 40 years.
