Racial and Ethnic Disparities and Prevalence in Prescription Drug Misuse, Illicit Drug Use, and Combination of Both Behaviors in the United States

Yen-Han Lee; Chase Woods; Mack Shelley; Stephan Arndt; Ching-Ti Liu; Yen-Chang Chang

doi:10.1007/s11469-023-01084-0

Racial and Ethnic Disparities and Prevalence in Prescription Drug Misuse, Illicit Drug Use, and Combination of Both Behaviors in the United States

Int J Ment Health Addict. 2023 May 19:1-17. doi: 10.1007/s11469-023-01084-0. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Yen-Han Lee¹, Chase Woods², Mack Shelley³, Stephan Arndt⁴, Ching-Ti Liu⁵, Yen-Chang Chang⁶

Affiliations

¹ University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816 USA.
² Missouri State University, Springfield, MO 65804 USA.
³ Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011 USA.
⁴ University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242 USA.
⁵ Boston University, Boston, MA 02118 USA.
⁶ National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu City, 300 Taiwan.

Abstract

This study examines racial and ethnic disparities and prevalence in prescription drug misuse, illicit drug use, and the combination of both behaviors in the United States. Using five waves of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH, 2015-2019; n = 276,884), a multinomial logistic regression model estimated the outcomes of prescription drug misuse, illicit drug use, and the combination of both behaviors. Participants' age was considered as an interaction effect. Approximately 5.4%, 2.9%, and 2.5% misused prescription drug, used illicit drug, or had both behaviors, respectively. Compared with White participants, Black (AOR = 0.69, 99.9 CI: 0.61, 0.79) and Asian (AOR = 0.60, 99.9% CI: 0.42, 0.87) participants had significantly lower odds of reporting prescription drug misuse. Individuals who were classified as others had higher odds of reporting illicit drug use (AOR = 1.31; 99.9% CI: 1.05, 1.64), compared with White participants. Black (AOR = 0.40, 99.9% CI: 0.29, 0.56) and Hispanic (AOR = 0.71, 99.9% CI: 0.55, 0.91) participants were significantly less likely to have both prescription drug misuse and illicit drug use behaviors. Interaction analysis showed that Black participants between 18 and 49 years old were less likely to participate in prescription drug misuse. However, Black participants who were 50 years of age or above were more likely to engage in illicit drug use and the combination of both prescription drug misuse and illicit drug use (all p < 0.001). Hispanic adult participants between 18 and 49 years old were more likely to engage in illicit drug use. Successful intervention and cessation programs may consider the cultural and age disparities among different racial and ethnic groups.

Keywords: Illicit drug use; Multiple drug use; Prescription drug misuse; Racial and ethnic disparities.

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