WHEREAS, the non-medical use or abuse of prescription drugs has been growing at an alarming rate in the United States and is a serious public health and law enforcement problem; and

WHEREAS, the abuse of prescription drugs, including OxyContin (oxycodone), has become the second most prevalent form of drug abuse (National Drug Control Strategy, February 2006); and 

WHEREAS, since 2001, there has been a 25 percent increase in the annual abuse of sedatives/barbiturates among 12th graders (“NIDA InfoFacts: High School and Youth Trends,” National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2005); and WHEREAS, according to a 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 6.3 million persons, or 2.7 percent of the U.S. population aged 12 and older, had used prescription psychotherapeutic medications nonmedically in the month prior to being surveyed (“NIDA InfoFacts: Prescription Pain and Other Medications,” National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2005); and

WHEREAS, in 2003, approximately 2.8 million people aged 12 and older had used “OxyContin” nonmedically at least once in their lifetimes, which was a significant increase from 2002 (“NIDA InfoFacts: Prescription Pain and Other Medications,” National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2005); and

WHEREAS, educating the public about emerging substance abuse problems is the most effective way to reduce illegal drug use and build local support for a community anti-drug effort. Educating residents about substance abuse problems is best accomplished by chiefs of police and other law enforcement leaders (“Community Briefings: A Prevention Tool For Communities,” Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America); now, therefore be it

RESOLVED that the International Association of Chiefs of Police strongly urges the support and promotion of education and awareness programs designed to combat the growing prescription drug abuse problem in the United States.