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Casual Users, Substance Abusers, and Public Policy

Casual Users, Substance Abusers, and Public Policy. The War On Drugs. Questions. Should public policy towards marijuana be any different than public policy towards alcohol consumption and cigarette consumption? Why?. Questions.

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Casual Users, Substance Abusers, and Public Policy

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  1. Casual Users, Substance Abusers, and Public Policy The War On Drugs

  2. Questions • Should public policy towards marijuana be any different than public policy towards alcohol consumption and cigarette consumption? • Why?

  3. Questions • The US has suffered three drug abuse epidemics. Why are we so vulnerable? • Is drug abuse a victimless crime? • Is marijuana the number one drug problem in the US?

  4. Outline • US Drug Problems • 1970’s: heroin • 1980’s: cocaine • 2000’s: meth • Fear, Aids, and Drug Policy • Drugs and Crime • Policy Towards Marijuana

  5. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/view http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/body

  6. http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/graphics.htm

  7. Death Rates from HIV

  8. Drugs and Crime: The Perception of the Victim Source: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/

  9. Arrests: The War on Drugs

  10. State Prisoners Federal Prisons: In 1996, Drug Offenders accounted for 60% of Federal Prisoners Federal Spending on Drug Control 1981 $1.5 Billion 1989 $6.7 “ 1990 $9.8 “ 1995 $13.0 “ 2000 $17.9 “ 2001 $18.1”

  11. Federal Drug Budget By Function • Total $17,940.3 $18,053.1 • Drug treatment $2,915.2 $3,168.3 • Drug prevention 2,338.6 2,515.7 • Criminal justice system 8,429.0 9,357.7 • International 1,892.9 609.7 • Interdiction 1,965.9 1,950.4 • Research 89.6 106.1 • Intelligence 309.1 345.2 • International (U.S. Support • for Plan Colombia 954.4

  12. Drug Use by High School Seniors ER Incidents

  13. Questions About Crime • What are the Social Policy Options Towards Victimless Crimes? • education problem • prevention • health problem • cure for addicts and abusers • fiscal problem • control use through taxes • law enforcement problem • focus on demand? • users • focus on supply? • distributors

  14. Education • Let an informed public make a choice • An individual would weigh the benefits against the costs • If the benefit/cost ratio exceeds one • smoke • drink • Could impose costs on others • driving under the influence • second hand smoke • Protection of Minors • blandishments of advertising • influence of peers

  15. Health • Treat substance abuse • Need to identify the abusers • many citizens are not covered under health plans • Difficult to cure addicts

  16. Fiscal Policy • Use excise taxes, a tax per unit, to control demand • tax per pack of cigarettes • tax per bottle of gin • Policy moderates rather than eliminates use • lacks the moral suasion of a law prohibiting use

  17. Law Enforcement • Control demand? • hard to keep tabs on numerous users • loss of respect for the law • people like to party • Control supply? • at home • search and destroy policies have a low success rate • abroad • interdiction of supply has low success rate • we export our enforcement problem to: • producing countries, e.g. Bolivia • transhipment countries, e.g. Mexico

  18. What are the Tradeoffs Among Policy Options?

  19. Some Consequences from Criminalizing Substance Use • barrier to law-abiding suppliers • enriches crooks • prohibition financed the Mafia in the US • drug profits have created a new Mafia in Colombia • high prices drive some users to crime to support their habit • easy money corrupts some law enforcement officials

  20. “Scale, nature, and perception of the drug problem are very different in ...” • United States • Canada • Western Europe Source: Peter Reuter et. al., Comparing Western Europe and North American Drug Policies, Rand

  21. The Western Nations Drug Problem

  22. Behavior Social Problem ( violence: US with guns, 50 million hanguns in private hands = 100 times the per capita rate in Europe) crime drug use AIDS (free needles for addicts: Germany Italy Netherlands Switzerland Great Britain)

  23. Country Number of Heroin Addicts Epidemic Decades US 600,000 - 800,000 60’s & 70’s Great Britain 60’s Germany 60’s Netherlands 60’s Spain 80’s Canada None Country Number of Cocaine Addicts Epidemic Decades US 1,800,000-2,000,000* 80’s Canada None * 12,000,000 users of at least once per year

  24. The Western Nations Drug Problem

  25. Market Analysis • Compare and contrast • free market • enforcement • fiscal policy • excise tax as a control device

  26. Market Analysis • concepts • market supply • marginal cost of production: the additional cost of one more unit • cost of production equals the sum of marginal costs • revenue = price * quantity sold • market demand • price some consumers are willing to pay • expenditure = price * quantity bought • consumer surplus: a measure of welfare for those consumers willing to pay above the market price

  27. Market Analysis • Concepts • supply and demand • determines the market price • the marginal cost of production = the marginal value of consumers • the quantity demanded equals the quantity supplied • profit = revenue - cost of production • profit, or producer’s surplus, is a welfare measure • total welfare benefit = consumer’s surplus + producer’s surplus

  28. Market Supply

  29. Market Demand

  30. Market Supply and Demand

  31. Enforcement Policy: Search, Confiscate, Resale

  32. Enforcement Policy: Search, Confiscate, Resale

  33. Enforcement Policy: Search, Confiscate, Burn

  34. Enforcement Policy: Search, Confiscate, Burn

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