DRUG USE BY YOUTHS ON THE RISE, COUNTY FINDS

Alcohol, Marijuana Top List, Health Report Shows

Drug use in Seattle and King County is on the increase, with nearly 1 in 3
high school seniors reporting regular use of marijuana, new health reports
show.

"The trends are headed in the wrong direction," said Norma Jaeger, King
County drug and alcohol coordinator and chief of treatment and
rehabilitation services for Public Health -- Seattle & King County.

Drugs are killing more hard-core users at the same time that more youths
are using drugs, health statistics and surveys show.

But alcohol still is the "No. 1 serious drug problem for young people"
because of its availability, Jaeger said. And marijuana is becoming so
prevalent among youths that its use is nearing that of alcohol.

One in 5 teenage boys and 1 in 7 teenage girls reports regularly using
drugs, alcohol or tobacco, a survey of the Washington state Division of
Alcohol and Substance Abuse found this year.

In King County, the statistics are worse, Jaeger said. Nearly 29 percent of
high school seniors percent have used marijuana in the past 30 days -- a
statistical indicator of regular usage. Sophomores are almost as likely to
use the drug, while eighth-grade use is at 16.5 percent.

"It's not good news and, based on the data, it sure doesn't look like our
problem with heroin has slacked off any," said Ron Jackson, director of
Evergreen Treatment Services, which provides methadone services for heroin
addicts.

King County reached a bleak milestone in 1998, posting a record 144 heroin
deaths.

While the heroin death toll continues to climb in King County, many addicts
still are unable to get treatment.

That is because of lack of funding, community resistance to treatment
programs and legislative limits on the number of people treated per clinic,
Jackson and Jaeger said.

Earlier this month, the King County Board of Health unanimously recommended
that the King County Council expand treatment for heroin addiction and
support eliminating the state limit on clinic size. The council has yet to
consider the recommendation for action.

Jackson noted that one "small dent" in the heroin problem had already been
made with the funding of a mobile methadone clinic. The 35-foot Winnebago
will provide 125 more "slots" for methadone treatment in the county, he said.

Jaeger said, "That helps, but we have at least 400 individuals on the
waiting list just at our needle exchange project."

And most heroin users don't sign up for the waiting list, so the need for
treatment is even greater, she said.

Beyond documenting Seattle's persistent problem with heroin, the Health
Department's key findings included:

Increased cocaine use after years of declining popularity.

Stable methamphetamine use in King County despite an increase in rural and
other areas of the state.

A 47 percent HIV infection rate among male methamphetamine users who also
have sex with men.

A 1 percent to 4 percent HIV infection rate among those who inject heroin
and cocaine. "This should dispel any grounds anyone may have had that we
have the situation under control," Jaeger said. "There's no room here for
complacency."