NCJ Number
150509
Journal
International Journal of Drug Policy Volume: 4 Issue: 3 Dated: (1993) Pages: 116-121
Date Published
1993
Length
6 pages
Annotation
The author examines arguments for and against drug legalisation and concludes that the case for or against making drugs legal involves complex and sometimes irrational factors.
Abstract
Drug legalisation is not a risk-free policy choice. Economic arguments relying on prices and quantities alone cannot provide the full answer because much depends on values that society ascribes to each potential effect of legalisation. Consequences of drug policy for social welfare can be grouped into five categories: consumer employment, drug harm, harm from the illegal drug market, crime, and tax revenue. The total social welfare impact of legalisation will be a combination of the preceding consequences. Legalisation will not necessarily eliminate the illegal drug market; its size will depend on relative price and quality in both legal and illegal drug markets. Legalisation will probably create more drug users but will shrink the illegal drug market. The author presents an economic analysis of drug legalisation and examines causal mechanisms that link drugs to harm, medical implications of drug use, and drug addiction. 3 references and 1 table