The relationship of quality and price of the psychostimulants cocaine and amphetamine with health care outcomes

• Published in: Drug and alcohol dependence 2010-09, Vol.111 (1), p.21-29
• Main Authors: Brunt, Tibor M, van Laar, Margriet, Niesink, Raymond J.M, van den Brink, Wim
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Adulteration; Amphetamine; Amphetamine - economics; Amphetamine-Related Disorders - economics; Amphetamine-Related Disorders - therapy; Amphetamines; Biological and medical sciences; Cocaine; Cocaine - economics; Cocaine-Related Disorders - economics; Cocaine-Related Disorders - therapy; Commerce; Drug addiction; Female; Health care; Health care outcomes; Health status; Hospital admissions; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Miscellaneous; Netherlands; Neuropharmacology; Patient Admission - statistics & numerical data; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Price; Prices; Psychiatry; Psychoanaleptics: cns stimulant, antidepressant agent, nootropic agent, mood stabilizer; Psychoanaleptics: cns stimulant, antidepressant agent, nootropic agent, mood stabilizer..., (alzheimer disease); Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Psychopharmacology; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Purity; Quality of care; Regression Analysis; Street Drugs - economics; Time-series regression analysis; Treatment Outcome
• ISSN: 0376-8716; 1879-0046
• DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2010.02.023

Abstract A major component of the illicit drug market can be subcategorized as the psychostimulant drug market, with cocaine and amphetamine as popular constituents. In The Netherlands, an increase in both health care outcomes addiction treatment and hospital admissions was noted for both amphetamine and cocaine throughout a period of 17 years (1992–2008). Both cocaine price and quality showed a decrease in The Netherlands during the studied period. We used time-series regression analysis to investigate whether price or quality of the drugs were associated with health care outcomes. Drug seizures were also added to the time-series regressions in order to check for possible effects of drug availability and supply. Price and quality of cocaine were strongly associated with health care outcomes of addiction treatment and hospital admissions. Price of amphetamine also showed a decrease during these 17 years, but was associated with an increase in addiction treatment only. Other amphetamine market variables did not show any relationship with the health care outcomes. It could be stated that following basic market logics does not apply equally to all psychostimulants of abuse. Other factors might play a role, such as the addictiveness or desirability of a specific drug in question. This finding is supportive of the dynamics of the illicit psychostimulant market affecting actual use and thereby health care outcomes.