It's Meth, Not Opioids, That Holds Power in the US, And The Numbers Are Rising

The opioid epidemic dominates headlines across the country but it is crystal meth that still holds the power.

"Meth continues to be a problem despite the fact there are fewer clandestine labs," said Barbara Carreno, spokesperson for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) headquarters.

So far in 2018, Customs and Border Patrol’s Office of Field Operations have seized over 67,000 pounds of meth. Around 14,000 pounds was seized in all of 2012.

"Demand for meth is still there, it's just being supplied almost exclusively by the Mexicans," Carreno said.

About 30 percent of law enforcement agencies that responded to the 2017 National Drug Threat Assessment by the DEA said meth was the greatest threat to their community.

Nearly the same percentage said meth was the drug that takes up the most law enforcement resources. Heroin was the highest with 36 percent of responding agencies.

But in terms of numbers of deaths, opioid overdoses are still in the lead. Over 60,000 people died of an overdose related to opioids in 2017, while there were just over 10,700 drug overdoses involving meth, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Meth is not getting a highlight because it's not killing as many people as the opioid crisis is. A meth user usually doesn't overdose and die from methamphetamine. (Circa, September 19, 2018)
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