In 2019, 0.1 percent of adolescents (or 19,000 people) had a methamphetamine use disorder in the past year. Among young adults aged 18 to 25 in 2019, 5.8 percent (or 2.0 million people) had a marijuana use disorder in the past year (Figure 39 and 2019 DT 7.49). Among adolescents aged 12 to 17 in 2019, 3.6 percent (or 894,000 people) had an illicit drug use what is the best treatment for substance abuse for older adults disorder in the past year (Figure 38 and 2019 DT 7.47). These estimates in 2019 were higher than the estimates in 2017 and 2018, but they were similar to the estimates in 2015 and 2016. Among adolescents aged 12 to 17 in 2019, 23,000 people initiated prescription sedative misuse in the past year (2019 DT 7.41), which was similar to the numbers in most years from 2015 to 2018.

Illicit Drug Use in the Past Year

SAMHSA cumple con las leyes federales de derechos civiles aplicables y no discrimina por motivos de raza, color, nacionalidad, edad, discapacidad o sexo. Along with the full report, a set of slides is available that displays figures from the report. While this steep reversal in trajectory is indeed a cause for optimism, Stephen Patrick, MD, chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management, explains why it is critical to be cautious when interpreting this data. Estimates from the 2021 NSDUH should not be compared with estimates from previous years because the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated methodological changes to the data collection process.

Any Mental Illness among Adults in the Past Year

The percentage who perceived great risk of harm from weekly heroin use ranged from 93.8 percent in 2019 to 94.5 percent in 2017. Among adolescents aged 12 to 17, the number of past year initiates of prescription stimulant misuse remained stable between 2015 and 2019 (2019 DT 7.41). In 2019, 238,000 adolescents initiated misuse of prescription stimulants in the past year, or an average of about 650 new prescription stimulant misusers aged 12 to 17 each day (Table A.3A).

Misuse of Psychotherapeutic Drugs

Prior to 2015, questions about methamphetamine use were asked in the context of questions about the misuse of prescription stimulants because methamphetamine is legally available by prescription (Desoxyn®). However, most methamphetamine used in the United States is produced and distributed illicitly rather than through the pharmaceutical industry. Beginning in 2015, therefore, NSDUH questionnaires have included separate sections for methamphetamine use and the use and misuse of prescription stimulants. Among people aged 12 or older, the percentage who were past year cocaine users decreased from 2.5 percent (or 5.9 million people) in 2002 to 2.0 percent (or 5.5 million people) in 2019 (Figure 13 and 2019 DT 7.2).

Substance Use among Adolescents with MDE

• Among adults aged 18 or older, the percentage who had serious thoughts of suicide in the past year increased from 3.7 percent (or 8.3 million people) in 2008 to 4.8 percent (or 12.0 million people) in 2019 (Figure 61 and 2019 DT 10.36).
• Among adults aged 26 or older, the percentage with a past year SUD remained stable between 2015 and 2019 (Figure 45 and 2019 DT 7.50).
• However, the order of the onset of SUDs relative to the onset of mental disorders cannot be established based on the NSDUH data for adults (e.g., whether the onset of SUDs preceded the onset of mental disorders, or vice versa).

In 2019, 24.5 percent of adults aged 26 or older (or 53.1 million people) were binge alcohol users in the past month (2019 DT 7.15). Also among young adults aged 18 to 25 in 2019 who had a co-occurring SUD and SMI in the past year, 51.4 percent (or 491,000 people) received only mental health services (2019 DT 10.28). This percentage in 2019 was higher than the percentage in 2015, but it was similar to the percentages in 2016 to 2018. Other common reasons for not receiving services included not knowing where to go for services (33.1 percent for these adults with AMI and 36.8 percent for these adults with SMI) and believing they could handle the problem without treatment (30.5 percent for these adults with AMI and 27.3 percent for these adults with SMI). In addition, 23.4 percent of these adults with SMI were concerned about being committed to a psychiatric hospital or having to take medication. Among the 6.8 million adults aged 26 to 49 in 2019 with past year SMI (2019 DT 10.3), 47.6 percent (or 3.3 million people) perceived an unmet need for mental health services in the past year (Figure 78 and 2019 DT 10.23).

Perceived Risk from Substance Use among Young Adults

• Among current cigarette smokers aged 18 to 25 in 2019, 35.4 percent (or 2.1 million people) smoked cigarettes daily in the past month (2019 DT 7.29).
• Among young adults aged 18 to 25, percentages for the past year misuse of prescription pain relievers declined from 8.5 percent (or 3.0 million people) in 2015 to 5.2 percent (or 1.8 million people) in 2019 (Figure 21 and 2019 DT 7.11).
• Among adolescents aged 12 to 17, the percentage with a past year opioid use disorder decreased from 0.6 percent (or 153,000 people) in 2016 to 0.3 percent (or 87,000 people) in 2019 (Figure 44 and 2019 DT 7.47).

The presence of a mental disorder may contribute to the development or exacerbation of an SUD. Likewise, the presence of an SUD may contribute to the development or exacerbation of a mental disorder. Among the 4.8 million young adults aged 18 to 25 in 2019 who needed substance use treatment in the past year (2019 DT 7.62), 7.4 percent (or 357,000 people) received substance use treatment at a specialty facility in the past year (Figure 69 and 2019 DT 7.63). Among adults aged 26 or older in 2019, 1.0 percent (or 2.2 million people) received substance use treatment at a specialty facility in the past year (Figure 68 and 2019 DT 7.57).

Table of Contents

All adult respondents were asked these questions about their use of mental health services (i.e., not just those with mental illness). Unlike the previously discussed questions about treatment for depression, general questions for the receipt of treatment or counseling for mental health issues among adults did not ask about treatment for a particular mental disorder. Consequently, references in this section to treatment or counseling for any problem with emotions, nerves, or mental health are described broadly as “mental health services” or “mental health care.” The 2021 NSDUH Detailed Tables present national estimates of substance use and mental health.

Looking for Treatment?

Thus, past year initiates of the use of substances other than prescription psychotherapeutic drugs reported their first use within 12 months of the interview date. This section discusses estimates of the perceived unmet need for mental health services among adults aged 18 or older with past year AMI or SMI. The section also discusses the reasons adults with AMI or SMI did not receive these services in the past year if they had a perceived unmet need. Both the percentage of young adults in 2019 who received prescription medication in the past year for a mental health issue and the percentage who received outpatient mental health services were higher than the corresponding percentages in each year from 2002 to 2018 (2019 DT 10.16).

Any Mental Health Services

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), released the results of the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The report shows how people living in the United States reported about their experience with mental health, substance use, and treatment related behaviors in 2022. 74 Due to questionnaire changes in 2009, estimates for the receipt of youth mental health services in educational settings are not comparable with estimates prior to 2009.

Tobacco Use

Among adults aged 26 or older, the percentage who were past year methamphetamine users increased from 0.5 percent (or 1.1 million people) in 2016 to 0.8 percent (or 1.7 million people) in 2019 (Figure 15 and 2019 DT 7.14). The percentage of adults in this population in 2019 who used methamphetamine in the past year was higher than the percentages in 2016 and 2017, but it was similar to the percentages in 2015 and 2018. Among young adults aged 18 to 25, the percentage who were past month heavy alcohol users declined from 10.9 percent (or 3.8 million people) in 2015 to 8.4 percent (or 2.8 million people) in 2019 (Figure 9 and 2019 DT 7.12).