SURVEY SEES DROP IN DRUG USE AMONG YOUNG AMERICANS

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Use of illegal drugs by young Americans declined in
1998, including a slight decrease in marijuana use, according to a
government survey released Wednesday.

Illicit drug use among those from 12 to 17 years old fell to 9.9 percent in
1998 from 11.4 percent in 1997 -- a figure still higher than 1996 when 9
percent of that age group reported using an illegal drug.

The number of teens reporting they tried marijuana for the first time
declined between 1997 and 1998, according to the National Household Survey
on Drug Abuse conducted by the Department of Health and Human services.

"For the past two years we have been cautiously optimistic as a series of
encouraging reports seemed to indicate a leveling off and even a possible
decline in drug use among teens after years of dramatic increases," HHS
Secretary Donna Shalala said. "It looks like we have turned the corner with
today's report."

The survey found that the percentage of teenagers using marijuana, the most
frequently used illicit drug, declined to 8.3 percent in 1998 from 9.4
percent in 1997.

The survey said use of inhalants by teens decreased by almost half to 1.1
percent in 1998 from 2 percent in 1997.

However, illicit drug abuse is increasing for those in the 18-25 age group
to 16.1 percent from 14.7 percent in 1997.

"This has occurred because the drug abuse rate was also much higher when
they were in the younger (12-17) group," U.S. drug enforcement chief Barry
McCaffrey said.

"The fact that the numbers are best for the youngest (12-17) is a harbinger
that use will continue to fall as this group grows older," he said.

The Drug Policy Foundation, a conservative group lobbying against drugs,
said using one year statistics was misleading.

"Since (President) Clinton took office, the teen rate has bounced from a low
of 5.7 percent to a high of 11.4 percent," it said.

According to the survey, cigarette and alcohol use among 12 to 17 year olds
remain almost unchanged between 1997 and 1998.

Overall, an estimated 13.6 million Americans, about 6.2 percent of the
population aged 12 and older, used illicit drugs in 1998, down slightly from
the 1997 13.9 million estimate.

The total number of illicit drug users has fluctuated since 1991 between 12
million to 14 million, about half its peak - reached in 1979 -- when there
were 25 million users.

McCaffrey said the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, that started
last August and includes television ads designed to encourage parent-child
discussions, only ran for six months of the time covered by the survey and
provides "another reason to expect additional improvement in coming years."

Clinton has requested $17.8 billion from Congress for drug control efforts
next year, a $735 million increase over 1999.

The survey was based on a sample of 25,500 persons. It did not include
prisoners, people living in residential drug treatment centers and homeless
people not living in a shelter.