The National Association of Counties found that methamphetamine is the number 1 illegal drug problem for 47 percent of the counties in the United States, a higher percentage than that of any other drug.
Methamphetamine labs are costly to clean up in that every pound of methamphetamine produced can yield up to 5 pounds of toxic waste, representing a public danger to adults and children.
Crime related to methamphetamine abuse continues to increase, with 55 percent of sheriffs reporting increases in robberies and burglaries during the last year.
The highest rates of methamphetamine use among all ethnic groups occurs within Native American communities. The consequence of methamphetamine use by many young adults in the Native American community has been death, including methamphetamine-related suicides.
4 out of 5 county sheriffs report that, while local methamphetamine production is down, methamphetamine abuse is not ( 1/2 of the Nation’s sheriffs report abuse of the drug has stayed the same and nearly 1/3 say that it has increased).
Most illegal methamphetamine available in the United States is produced in large clandestine laboratories in Mexico and smuggled into this country.
The profile of methamphetamine users is changing, as 3/5 of the Nation’s sheriffs report increased methamphetamine use by women and 1/2 of the Nation’s sheriffs report increased use by teens.
In surveys on the abuse of methamphetamine among teens, many of the respondents said that the drug was easy to get and believed there is little risk in trying it.
Other National Association of Counties surveys have shown that methamphetamine also places significant burdens on local social service and health care resources, increasing out-of-home placements for children, sending more people to public hospital emergency rooms than any other drug, and producing an ever-growing need for methamphetamine treatment programs.
Information from The Library of Congress website