NCJ Number
230449
Date Published
April 2010
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This ONDCP (Office of National Drug Control Policy) Update (March-April) features reports on recent international efforts to counter drug trafficking and use, as well as the presentation of data that show a surge in the number of emergency-room cases of nonmedical use of pharmaceutical drugs.
Abstract
National Drug Policy Director Gil Kerlikowske and ONDCP Deputy Director Tom McLellan led the U.S. delegation to the 53rd Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in Vienna, Austria. The CND, organized by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, sponsors the world's largest annual meeting of government and law enforcement officials on drug policy issues. Speaking at the conference, Director Kerlikowske reaffirmed the Obama administration's commitment to work with international partners in reducing drug trafficking and illicit drug use around the world. Highlights of this year's CND conference included the adoption of two U.S.-sponsored resolutions that focus on topics central to the Obama administration's drug control strategy, i.e., community-based prevention and reducing prescription drug abuse. While in Vienna for the CND conference, Director Kerlikowske met with the Russian delegation to discuss strengthening U.S.-Russian cooperation in reducing drug flows and drug demand, and increasing judicial cooperation. In another international meeting on drug abuse countermeasures, top government officials from the United States and Mexico met in February in Washington, DC. They issued a joint statement that identified six priority areas for cooperation in countering substance abuse and its consequences. The statement emphasized a commitment to reduce illicit drug consumption and the urgent need for the nations to work collaboratively with one another and other partners in the region. The data on emergency-room cases involving the nonmedical use of pharmaceutical drugs show a significant increase in recent years, from 536,247 cases in 2004 to 971,914 cases in 2008 (an 81-percent increase).