State Estimates of Past Year Cocaine Use among Young Adults: 2014 and 2015

Cocaine is a powerfully addictive stimulant. Recent findings suggest that cocaine use may be reemerging as a public health concern in the United States. This report highlights State estimates of cocaine use. This report presents 2014 to 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) estimates of past year cocaine use among persons aged 18 to 25 in each of the 50 States and the District of Columbia. Based on data from the combined 2014–2015 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, 1.7 million young adults aged 18 to 25 in the United States used cocaine in the past year (4.98 percent of the young adult population). This equates to about 1 out of every 20 young adults across the nation using cocaine in the past year. At the state level, past year cocaine use varied from 1.83 percent in Mississippi to 10.54 percent in New Hampshire. Cocaine use among young adults increased in 16 states (when comparing combined 2014–2015 estimates with combined 2013–2014 estimates) and 3 regions. Use remained unchanged for the remaining 34 states and the District of Columbia and for the West. No decreases occurred in any census region or state. These findings suggest that cocaine is emerging as an issue among young adults, although the prevalence of the issue is not uniform across all States.