More than 10 percent of D.C. residents addicted to drugs or alcohol
Approximately 60,000 residents of Washington, D.C. — more than 10 percent of the city’s population — have substance abuse problems. That is one of the major findings of a report released this week by the office of Mayor Anthony Williams and detailed in the Washington Post. The study also concludes that addictions to alcohol and illegal drugs cost the city $1.2 billion annually in decreased productivity, illness, crime, jail costs and premature death, according to the paper. The city also has set two goals to achieve by the end of the decade: reduce the number of addicts to 25,000 and decrease the financial costs of drug and alcohol abuse to $300 million. For more information, visit
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A30908-2003Oct1.html
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