Headlines: $89 Million Awarded to Community Coalitions To Prevent Youth Substance Use


SAMHSA Headlines

September 28, 2017
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Funding   |    Data   |    Resources   |    Events


Funding

$89 Million Awarded to Largest-Ever Number of Community Coalitions To Prevent Youth Substance Use

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) announced $89 million in Drug-Free Communities Support Program grants to 719 local drug prevention coalitions—the largest number of single-year grantees since the program's founding. Directed by ONDCP, in partnership with SAMHSA, these grants will provide local community coalitions with funding to prevent youth substance use, including prescription drugs, marijuana, tobacco, and alcohol.

Data

New Report Shows Marijuana Had the Largest Illicit Drug Use Initiation in 2016

A new report from SAMHSA reveals that 2.6 million people aged 12 or older in 2016 tried marijuana for the first time in the past year. Only about a third of people aged 12 or older perceived great risk of harm from weekly marijuana use. When asked, 44.7 percent of youth aged 12 to 17 reported that obtaining marijuana would be fairly easy or very easy for them.

Suicidality and Death by Suicide Among Middle-Aged Adults in the United States

The 2009 to 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health data indicate that middle-aged adults aged 45 to 64 had significantly lower percentages of suicidal thoughts and attempts (3.5 and 0.3 percent, respectively) compared with 18 to 25 year olds, who had the highest rate of suicidal thoughts and attempts (6.9 and 1.2 percent, respectively).

Findings From 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) Reveal Only a Subset of Individuals Receive Services for Substance Use and Mental Health Issues

A new SAMHSA report reveals that 19.9 million adults needed substance use treatment in the past year, representing 8.1 percent of adults aged 18 or older in the United States. Out of 19.9 million adults needing substance use treatment, only 10.8 percent (2.1 million) received treatment at a specialty facility. That means about 17.7 million adults who needed treatment did not receive treatment at a specialty facility for their substance use.

Resources

SAMHSA Knowledge Network

SAMHSA recently announced the launch of the Knowledge Network website, the premier library of online behavioral health training, technical assistance, and workforce development resources for the health care community. The Knowledge Network provides a single, searchable portal to SAMHSA's publicly available online training and technical assistance content with the goal of improving the design and delivery of prevention, treatment, and recovery services. This website will help health care practitioners to easily find specific tools and resources (such as webinars, white papers, fact sheets, trainings, and videos) that span SAMHSA's broad portfolio across many disciplines and online locations.

Keeping Youth Drug Free Resource Guide

This resource guide for parents offers advice on keeping children substance free. Review statistics about adolescent substance use and learn tips on good communication. The guide also features facts about substance use and case studies for additional insight.

Events

September 29, 2017, 2:00–3:00 p.m. Eastern Time

National Institute of Health Twitter Chat

On Friday, September 29 from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will be hosting a Twitter chat on the opioid addiction and overdose crisis in the United States for National Recovery Month. NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins, National Institute on Drug Abuse Director Dr. Nora Volkow, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Director Dr. Walter J. Koroshetz, special guest American Society of Addiction Medicine, and several other NIH and HHS components will be responding to questions about the opioid crisis and how the government is working to combat it. Use the hashtag #OpioidAwareChat on Twitter to join the conversation or follow along.