April 19, 2002

Substance Use Among

Persons in Families Receiving
Government Assistance
W
hile some individuals may be able
In Brief to make the transition from
welfare to work by participating in
! An estimated 27 million employment training programs and receiving
persons aged 12 to 64 lived government assistance in the form of
transportation and child care, others among
in families that received the assisted population have problems with
government assistance in substance use and may require additional
the year prior to the interview assistance to overcome their problem. The
National Household Survey on Drug Abuse
! Prevalence of past month (NHSDA) provides information on the extent
heavy alcohol use was lower in and nature of this problem.
assisted families than in Annually, the NHSDA asks respondents if
family members receive Food Stamps,
unassisted families among Supplemental Security Income (SSI), cash
persons aged 18 to 25, but assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy
higher among persons aged 35 Families), and non-cash assistance (such as
to 49 housing, child care, job training or
placement, transportation). In addition, the
! Past month illicit drug use survey asks if respondents receive Medicaid. 1
was higher in assisted In this report, an assisted family is a family in
which at least one member benefited from an
families than in unassisted assistance program in the calendar year prior
families among persons to the interview. The estimates of the
aged 12 to 64 prevalence of illicit drug use and heavy
alcohol use in the past 30 days for individuals
The NHSDA Report is published periodically by the Office of Applied Studies, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA). All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission from SAMHSA.
Additional copies of this report may be downloaded from http://www.samhsa.gov/oas/facts.cfm. Citation of the source is appreciated. Other
reports from the Office of Applied Studies are also available on-line: http://www.DrugAbuseStatistics.samhsa.gov/.
NHSDA REPORT: SUBSTANCE USE AMONG PERSONS IN FAMILIES RECEIVING GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE April 19, 2002

aged 12 to 64 who live in assisted

families have been developed by
combining data from the 1999 and
2000 NHSDA.2 Estimates of
prevalence are annual averages.
Characteristics of Persons
Table 1: Characteristics and Percentages Reporting Past Month
Substance Use, by Family Assistance Status — Annual Averages for
Persons Aged 12 to 64: 1999 and 2000
Percent of Persons
Reporting Past
Month Use

in Families Receiving Heavy Illicit

Estimated Median Percent Alcohol Drug
Assistance Person’s Family Status Population Age Female Use Use

On average, approximately 14 All persons 190,332,755 37 51.3 6.4 7.2

percent of persons aged 12 to 64 (or Persons in assisted family 27,395,310 33 60.5 5.9 9.6 [a]
Persons in unassisted family 162,937,445 37 49.7 6.4 6.8 [a]
27 million persons) lived in assisted
families (Table 1). Fifty-one Person or family receiving:
percent of these persons received Medicaid 13,925,491 30 63.2 5.0 [b] 10.1 [c]
Supplemental Security Income 10,931,240 40 57.3 5.9 8.0
Medicaid; 40 percent were in Cash assistance 7,118,349 29 65.1 5.6 11.5 [d]
families receiving Supplemental Non-cash assistance 6,216,797 29 64.9 6.7 10.6 [e]
Security Income; 45 percent were Food Stamps 12,213,555 31 63.6 5.7 10.6 [f]
in families receiving Food Stamps;
26 percent were in families
receiving cash assistance; and 23
percent were in families receiving assisted families is higher than the
Patterns of Past Month rate for persons in families receiving
non-cash assistance. Sixty-one
Substance Use no government assistance.
percent of persons aged 12 to 64 in
assisted families were female, Past month illicit drug use.
Past month heavy alcohol use.
compared with 50 percent in Among all persons aged 12 to 64,
Among all persons aged 12 to 64,
families that receive no government 7.2 percent report past month illicit
6.4 percent report past month
assistance. Thirty-six percent of drug use. The prevalence among
heavy alcohol use. The prevalence
persons aged 12 to 64 in assisted persons in assisted families (9.6
of past month heavy alcohol use
families were aged 12 to 25; 44 percent) is higher than among
among persons in assisted families is
percent were aged 26 to 49; and, 20 persons in families receiving no
5.9 percent, not significantly differ-
percent were aged 50 to 64. By government assistance (6.8
ent from the rate of 6.4 percent
comparison, 26 percent of persons percent). For both males and
among persons living in families
aged 12 to 64 in families receiving females, and across all age groups,
benefiting from no government
no government assistance were the prevalence of past month illicit
assistance (Table 1). The preva-
aged 12 to 25; 52 percent were aged drug use in assisted families is about
lence of 9.5 percent among males
26 to 49; and, 22 percent aged 50 to the same or greater than the preva-
in assisted families is not signifi-
64. Age characteristics of persons lence among families receiving no
cantly different from the prevalence
in assisted families also differed government assistance (Figure 2).
of 9.9 percent among males in
across assistance programs – the Substance use by type of
unassisted families (Figure 1). The
median age of persons aged 12 to assistance program. Prevalence
prevalence is also similar among
64 in assisted families receiving of past month heavy alcohol use
females in assisted and unassisted
Medicaid, cash assistance, non-cash among persons aged 12 to 64
families, but is lower than the rate
assistance or Food Stamps was receiving Medicaid is lower than
among males. For both males and
about 10 years younger than the among persons not receiving
females aged 18 to 25, the preval-
median age of persons aged 12 to Medicaid (Table 1). The preva-
ence among persons in assisted
64 in families receiving Supple- lence of past month illicit drug use
families is lower than the prevalence
mental Security Income. Because among persons in families receiving
for persons in families receiving no
of these gender and age differences, Medicaid, cash assistance, non-cash
government assistance. However,
rates of substance use are presented assistance, or Food Stamps is higher
for both males and females aged 35
by these demographic character- than among persons in families who
to 49, the prevalence of heavy
istics. do not benefit from any of these
alcohol use among persons in
types of assistance.
April 19, 2002 NHSDA REPORT: SUBSTANCE USE AMONG PERSONS IN FAMILIES RECEIVING GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE

End Notes Figure 1. Persons Aged 12 to 64: Prevalence of Past Month Heavy
1. A family could consist of only one member (i.e. Alcohol Use by Age and Family Assistance Status: 1999–2000
just the respondent).
2. Any illicit drug use refers to marijuana, cocaine, Percent Reporting Past Month Heavy Alcohol Use
heroin, hallucinogens, and inhalants and non- Females Males
medical use of prescription-type pain relievers,
tranquilizers, stimulants, and sedatives. Heavy 10 8 6 4 2 0 0 5 10 15 20 25
alcohol use is defined as five or more drinks on
3.5 9.5
the same occasion, on at least 5 different days, Total
2.9 9.9
in the past 30 days.
1.8 3.2
12–17
1.9 3.1
Table and Figure Notes
5.0 13.8
18–25*
Table 1 — Unassisted families are families who do 7.8 19.8
not benefit from any of the government
assistance programs considered in this report.
2.7 26–34 11.5
2.9 12.6
An assisted family may receive more than one
type of government assistance. 4.4 13.0
35–49*
[a] The prevalence of illicit drug use among 2.3 9.0
persons aged 12 to 64 in assisted families is 3.0 6.3
significantly higher than among persons in 50–64
1.2 5.9
unassisted families (p-value of less than or
equal to 0.05); but no significant difference was
found between the two groups in the In Assisted Family In Unassisted Family
prevalence of heavy alcohol use.
[b] Heavy alcohol use among persons receiving
Medicaid is significantly lower than among
persons not receiving Medicaid (6.5 percent).
Figure 2. Persons Aged 12 to 64: Prevalence of Past Month Illicit Drug
[c] Illicit drug use is significantly higher among Use by Age and Family Assistance Status: 1999–2000
persons receiving Medicaid, than among
persons not receiving Medicaid (7.0).
Percent Reporting Past Month Illicit Drug Use
[d] Illicit drug use is significantly higher among
persons in families receiving cash assistance Females Males
than among persons in families not receiving 15 12 9 6 3 0 0 5 10 15 20 25
cash assistance (7.1 percent).
7.8 12.3
[e] Illicit drug use is significantly higher among Total*
5.1 8.6
persons in families receiving non-cash
assistance than among persons in families not 10.6 11.9
12–17*
receiving non-cash assistance (7.2 percent). 9.2 9.5
[f] Illicit drug use is significantly higher among 12.9 20.6
persons in families receiving Food Stamps than 18–25
12.5 19.5
among persons in families not receiving Food
Stamps (7.0 percent). 7.4 26–34* 15.2
4.3 9.3
* Denotes a p-value of less than or equal to 0.05
for a statistical test of differences between 6.9 10.6
35–49*
percent reporting by persons from assisted 3.7 7.2
families and persons in unassisted families.
2.9 4.9
Source (table and all figures): SAMHSA 1999 and 50–64
1.2 2.0
2000 NHSDAs.

In Assisted Family In Unassisted Family

The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) is an annual survey
sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA). The 1999 and 2000 data were based on information from 133,125
persons aged 12 to 64, of whom 23,807 persons lived in assisted families.
Among the persons aged 12 to 64 living in assisted families (who could be
benefiting from more than one government assistance program), 13,491
benefited from Medicaid, 7,242 persons lived in families benefiting from
Supplemental Security Income, 6,841 persons lived in families benefiting from
cash assistance, 6,127 persons lived in families benefiting from non-cash
assistance, and 11,238 persons lived in families benefiting from Food Stamps.
The NHSDA Report is prepared by the Office of Applied Studies (OAS),
SAMHSA, and by RTI in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
Also available on-line: www.DrugAbuseStatistics.samhsa.gov.
Additional tables available upon request.
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration
Office of Applied Studies
www.samhsa.gov