NATIONALLY, METH USE IS RARE, REPORT ASSERTS

WASHINGTON- Methamphetamine use is rare in most of the United States,
not the raging epidemic described by politicians and the news media,
says a study by an advocacy group.

Meth is a dangerous drug but is among the least commonly used, Ryan
King, policy analyst for The Sentencing Project, wrote in a report
issued Wednesday. Rates of use have been stable since 1999, and among
teenagers meth use has dropped, King said.

"The portrayal of methamphetamine in the United States as an epidemic
spreading across the country has been grossly overstated," King said.
The Sentencing Project is a not-for-profit group that supports
alternatives to prison terms for convicted drug users and other criminals.

The report cites statistics compiled by the government to make its
case, including a 2004 survey that estimated 583,000 people used meth
in the past month, or 0.2 percent of the U.S. population. Four times
as many people use cocaine regularly, and 30 times as many use
marijuana, King said.

A separate survey of high school students showed a 36 percent drop in
meth use between 2001 and 2005.