Colleges, Universities & Collegiate
Recovery Programs
Key Leverage Points for Drug Policy
in the 21st Century
David K. Mineta
Deputy Director, Demand Reduction
Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)
Presented at the 5th Annual Collegiate Recovery Conference
Minneapolis, MN
A 21st Century Drug Policy
“[T]his Administration
remains committed to a
balanced public health and
public safety approach to
drug policy.”
- President Barack Obama
Source: NIDA – Introduction to
the Brain
A 21st Century Drug Policy
• Stop drug use before it starts & intervene early
(prevention, early intervention)
• Integrate with other sectors (primary care,
campus health centers, etc.) using SBIRT
• Expand access to treatment, including medication
(buprenorphine, methadone, naltrexone)
• Raise awareness of substance use disorders (SUD)
and recovery
• Expand access to recovery support services
• Prevent & reverse overdose
SUD Prevalence – Young Adults
• In 2012, 22.2 million
Americans aged 12 or
older had a substance use
disorder in the past year
(8.5 percent of the
population aged 12 or
older).
Percent SUD by Age Group - 2012
18.9%
20.0%
18.0%
16.0%
14.0%
12.0%
10.0%
7.0%
6.1%
8.0%
• 6.1 percent of young
people aged 12-17 had
already developed a
substance use disorder.
6.0%
4.0%
2.0%
0.0%
12-17
18-25
26 +
Data Source: SAMHSA (2013). Results from 2012 NSDUH.
• Nearly 1 of 5 (18.9 percent) of young adults aged 18 to
25 had a past year substance use disorder.
Cost of Substance Use
• 2006 - excessive drinking in the United States resulted in
$223 billion in lost productivity, healthcare, and criminal
justice costs.1
• 2007 - Illicit drug use cost the Nation an estimated $193
billion related to health care, crime, and lost productivity.2
• 2010 - An average of about 100 Americans died from
overdose every day. Drug poisoning deaths, driven by
prescription painkillers, now surpass homicides and traffic
crashes as the leading cause of injury death in America.3
1. Bouchery et al (2011) Economic costs of excessive alcohol consumption in the U.S., 2006. Am J Prev Med 41 (5): 516-524
2. United States Department of Justice, National Drug Intelligence Center. (2011) The Economic Impact of Illicit Drug Use on
American Society. Washington, DC.
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 2000-2010 on CDC
WONDER Online Database. Extracted December 12, 2012.
Opioid Epidemic
• 2012 -12.5 million people used a prescription
opioid non-medically in the past year (669,000 used
heroin).
• Approximately 4 percent of non-medical users of
prescription opioids transition to heroin within 5
years of first non-medical use of RX opioids.1
1
Muhuri, PK; Gfroerer, JC; and Davies, MC. 2013. Associations of nonmedical pain reliever use and initiation of heroin use
in the United States. CBHSQ Data Review. SAMHSA.
Campus as Nexus of
Public Health Response
• If almost 1 of 5 college-age people have a
past year SUD, why aren’t we finding them?
– Need universal screening, brief intervention, or
referral to treatment and supports
– Cultural norms and expectations
– Institutional resistance
– Stigma
– Flight from campus?
Collegiate Recovery Communities
• Critical component of a comprehensive
response to drug use and substance use
disorders on college campuses
• Need to:
– Learn to expand reach to a greater portion of
those in or seeking recovery
– Explore the extent to which CRPs can have a
positive affect on campus norms and
expectations
Collegiate Recovery Communities
• Vibrant and attractive campus communities
• Diverse, tolerant, informed by an ethic of
service
• Anchored in the student community and
recognized as a vehicle for positive social
engagement & leadership development
• Safe – Where I can go and not be judged
or pressured
Moving Forward
• Potential for CRPs to begin transforming the
face of college campuses in the future
• Need for comprehensive campus-wide
approaches, including screening, information,
advice, and intervention
• Opportunity for students to take leadership
role in building healthier, more resilient
campuses for themselves and their peers
• Chance to inform policy, practice, and campus
life nationally
Q & A / Discussion
David K. Mineta
Deputy Director, Demand Reduction
Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)
dmineta@ondcp.eop.gov