What are the statistics of Hydrocodone abuse?
Hydrocodone abuse has been escalating over the last decade. There has been large scale diversion of Hydrocodone. For example, an estimated 7 million dosage units were diverted in 1994 and over 11 million in 1997. In 1998 there were over 56 million new prescriptions written for Hydrocodone products and by 2000 there were over 89 million. From 1990 the average consumption nationwide has increased by 300%. In the same period there has been a 500% increase in the number of Emergency Department visits attributed to Hydrocodone abuse with 19,221 visits estimated in 2000. In 1997, there were over 1.3 million Hydrocodone tablets seized and analyzed by the DEA laboratory system. A recent petition submitted to the DEA has requested a review of the control status of all Hydrocodone-containing products.
