James N. Hall, Director Center for the Study and ...cdn.trustedpartner.com/docs/library/UWBCCommissionSubstanceAb… · EPIDEMIOLOGICAL TRENDS IN ALCOHOL USE AND ABUSE—Broward County,

James N. Hall, Director

Center for the Study and Prevention of

Substance Abuse

Nova Southeastern University

United Way of Broward County Commission on Substance AbuseMiramar Police Department Nova Southeastern University

FL Dept. of Children & Families Memorial Health Care SystemCircuit 17

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL TRENDS IN ALCOHOL USE AND ABUSE—Broward County, Florida

United Way of Broward County Commission on Substance Abuse Jan 2007- Jun 2008 Alcohol Epidemiology Report 1

Alcohol Use and Abuse in Broward County, FloridaJames N. Hall1

ABSTRACT

Alcohol is the most used and abused drug nationally and locally with more than half of BrowardCounty residents aged 12 and above reporting its use in the past month. Consequences of alcohol useremain stable at high rates. More than 44,500 Broward County residents are considered to be alcoholdependent with nearly 100,000 in need of, but not receiving, treatment for its abuse or addiction.Middle-aged, White males are most frequently reported in alcohol-related consequences. The numberof driving-under-the-influence arrests in Broward County has remained stable since 2005, whilearrests for liquor law violations declined sharply between 2003 and 2006 but increased in 2007 and2008. This report summarizes findings from a review of 30,511 Broward County alcohol-relatedrecords including 11,711 responses from 3 surveys, 3,873 hospital emergency department reports,4,080 alcohol addiction treatment admissions, 6,127 DUI arrests, 4,151 liquor law violations, and 569alcohol-related deaths in calendar year 2007 and the first half of 2008.

Report Highlights

The rates of current alcohol use and binge drinking among Broward’s underage population aged12 to 20 years are slightly below the rates for the nation and the State of Florida.

The percent of Broward middle school students reporting alcohol use has declined steadily since2004.

Two independent surveys reveal modest increases in current alcohol use among Broward Countyhigh school students in 2007 and 2008.

Broward high school students report one of the nation’s highest rates of students saying, “theyusually buy alcohol at a retail store” among those who are current alcohol users

The percent of Broward County students reporting having their first drink of alcohol before age13 has declined modestly in recent years.

Alcohol-related suicide attempts were identified in 341 hospital emergency department reportsand among 100 deaths in Broward County from January 2007 through June 2008.

Among those coming to Broward County emergency rooms for an alcohol-related problem in2007 and the first half of 2008, 19 percent were seeking detoxification and 34 percent wereadmitted to some form of inpatient care.

A Federal survey reports that 98,706 Broward County residents were in need of, but did notreceive treatment for alcohol abuse or dependency in the past year.

1 Mr. Hall is affiliated with the United Way of Broward County Commission on Substance Abuse’s Center for the Study and Prevention ofSubstance Abuse at Nova Southeastern University.



Area Description

Broward County is composed of Ft. Lauderdale plus 28 other municipalities and an unincorporated area.The county covers 1,197 square miles, including 25 miles of coastline. According to 2006 census estimates,the population was 1.8 million. The population is roughly 49 percent White non-Hispanic, 25 percent Blacknon-Hispanic, 23 percent Hispanic, and 3 percent Asian/Pacific Islanders. One fourth of the County’spopulation are foreign born. The population described in this report are Broward County residents aged 12and above totaling 1,471,026. Broward County is the second most populated county in Florida and accountsfor approximately 10 percent of Florida’s population. Broward was the top growth county in Florida in the1990s and added 367,000 more people during that decade and an additional 127,713 between 2000 and2005.

Data Sources

This report describes current alcohol trends in Broward County, using the data sources summarizedbelow:

Survey data on the prevalence of alcohol use among the general population aged 12 and above inBroward County are provided by the Sub-State Substance Abuse Estimates from the 2004-2006National Surveys on Drug Use and Health conducted by the Office of Applied Studies (OAS),SAMHSA.

Survey data on the prevalence of substance use by high school students nationally, across the Stateof Florida, Broward County, Miami-Dade County, and Palm Beach County are from the 1997-2007Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS).

Survey data on the prevalence of substance use by middle and high school students in Florida arefrom the 2000-2008 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys conducted by the State’s Departmentof Children and Families.

Alcohol-related mortality data were provided by the Broward County Medical Examiner’s Officefor January 2003 through June 2008.

Emergency department (ED) data were derived for 2007 and the first half of 2008 from theDAWN Live! restricted-access online query system administered by the Office of Applied Studies(OAS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Eligible hospitalsin the Ft. Lauderdale Division totaled 27; there were 22 hospitals in the DAWN sample, and thenumber of emergency departments in the sample also totaled 22. During 2007 and the first half of2008, 9 EDs reported data each month. The completeness of data reported by participating EDsvaried by month. Exhibits in this paper for Broward County reflect cases that were received byDAWN as of December 22, 2008. Based on this review, cases may be corrected or deleted.Therefore, the data presented in this paper are subject to change. Data derived from DAWN Live!represent alcohol reports in drug-related ED visits. The DAWN Live! data are unweighted and, thus,are not estimates for the reporting area. These data cannot be compared to DAWN data from 2002and before, nor can preliminary data be used for comparison with future data. Only weightedDAWN data released by SAMHSA can be used for trend analysis. A full description of the DAWNsystem can be found online at http://dawninfo.samhsa.gov/.



Alcohol treatment data for January 2008 to June 2008 were provided by the Broward AddictionRecovery Center (BARC) of the Broward County Department of Human Services and are from 9 adultprograms operated by BARC in Broward County. There are a total of 19 addiction treatmentprograms in the County.

Alcohol-related crime data is provided by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement UniformCrime Reports county-level arrest data from 2000 through 2008.

Data Summary by Age Groups January 2007 to June 2008

Youth (under 18 years of age)A summary of the data on alcohol use and abuse consequences impacting those below the age of 18 isprovided in the table below.

Youth#(% of all)

All Ages#

AlcoholDeaths 1-17 years 2 569ED cases <18 257 (7 %) 3,873High School 30-daycurrent use2007 CDC survey

42.6%

High School 30-daycurrent use2001 CDC survey

44 %

Middle School30-day current use2008 FL Y Survey

16.8%

Middle School30-day current use2000 FL Y Survey

19.8 %

Young Adults (18 to 24 years)A summary of the data on alcohol use and abuse consequences impacting those between 18 and 24 yearsof age is presented in the table below.

YoungAdult#(% of all)

All Ages#

AlcoholDeaths 18-20 years 18 (3 %) 569Deaths 21-24 years 45 (8 %) 569ED cases 18-24 775 (20%) 3,873Treatment mentionsage 18 – 24 years 96 (4 %) 2,70630-day current useAged 18 –25 yearsNSDUH

58.5 % 53.7 %



Adults (25 – 54 years)

A summary of the data on alcohol use and abuse consequences impacting those between 25 and 54 yearsof age is presented in the table below. Rates for alcohol addiction treatment clients are for those aged 25to 49 years.

Adults#(% of all)

All Ages#

AlcoholDeaths 25-54 years 357 (63%) 569ED cases 25-54 yrs. 2,633

(68 %)3,873

Treatment mentions25-49 years 1,716

(63 %)2,706

30-day current useAge 25 years

and overNSDUH

57.2 % 53.7 %

Senior Adults (55 years plus)

The table below summarizes the report’s data on those 55 years of age and older involved in Browardalcohol-related deaths and emergency department patients. Rates for alcohol addiction treatment clientsare for those over the age of 50 years.

MatureAdults# (% of all)

All Ages#

AlcoholDeaths 55 + 144 (25 %) 569ED cases55+ 206 (5 %) 3,873Treatmentmentions50+

249 (33 %) 2,706



ALCOHOL USE AND ABUSE PATTERNS AND TRENDS

Prevalence of Consumption

Prevalence of alcohol use and abuse is the measure of what proportion (or percentage) of a selectedpopulation consumes and what proportion experiences or causes negative consequences. Prevalence ismost frequently measured by surveys. Prevalence of alcohol in Broward County is tracked by threesurveys among youth. An additional Federal survey tracking alcohol use among the 8th, 10th, and 12th

graders is not Broward County specific but does provide national rates of alcohol-related behavior.

Underage Alcohol Use (Ages 12-20 Years)

Data on alcohol use for those aged 12 to 20 years from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health(NSDUH) is available at the sub-state level for 350 areas in the United States including BrowardCounty. The findings released in 2008 were prepared by combining 3 years of NSDUH results (2004-2006) to provide adequate samples representative of the local areas. Exhibit 1 compares the alcoholrates among those ages 12-20 years for the nation, the State of Florida, and Broward County, as well asneighboring Miami-Dade and Palm Beach Counties. The questions address prevalence rates of (1)current alcohol use defined as any use within the past 30 days before taking the survey and (2) currentbinge alcohol use defined as having 5 or more drinks on a single occasion during the same time period.The Broward rates of past month use and binge drinking were slightly below those for the Nation, all ofFlorida, and Palm Beach County but were above those for Miami-Dade County. Among all Browardresidents aged 12 to 20 years, 26.66 percent (or an estimated 61,837 persons) reported current alcoholuse in the past month and 16.96 percent (or an estimated 39,338 persons) reported binge drinking.Almost two-thirds (64 percent) of Broward residents age 12 to 20 years of age who report drinkingalcohol in the last 30 days also report binge drinking in the same time period.

A special report on Risky and Destructive Behaviors associated with underage alcohol use by childrenand youth explores the key consequences identified by the Broward Commission on Substance Abuse’sUnderage Drinking Task Force. These include but are not limited to;

Driving after drinking alcohol Riding with someone who has been drinking alcohol Engaging in fighting with the intent to harm someone Other violence including rape Carrying or using weapons Having unwanted and unprotected sex Drinking to get drunk Breaking the law Drinking at school Disobeying parents or school rules and regulations Damaging the not yet fully developed brain Use of illegal drugs including the nonmedical use of pharmaceuticals.



Exhibit 1

Percent of Persons Aged 12-20Reporting Alcohol Use

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

%R

ep

ort

ing

Use

United States

State of Florida

Broward County

Miami-Dade County

Palm Beach County

United States 28.27 18.95

State of Florida 27.41 17.68

Broward County 26.66 16.96

Miami-Dade County 23.3 13.16

Palm Beach County 28.54 18.89

Past 30 Day Use Binge Drinking Past 30 days

Source: SAMHSA- National Surveys on Drug Use and Health 2004-2006 Sub-State Data

High School StudentsYouth alcohol prevalence rates are derived for high school students (grades 9-12) from the US Centersfor Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDCP) national Youth Behavior Risk Surveillance Survey(YRBS). It is over-sampled in 22 metropolitan areas, including Broward County, to provide localprevalence rates for these communities. The survey has been conducted in odd-number years since1993. The most current local results are from 2007.

The Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (FL-YS) has been conducted annually since 2000 formiddle and high school students across the State of Florida. In even-numbered years, the survey hasbeen over-sampled to provide prevalence rates for the counties of Florida. The most current state-leveland Broward County information is from 2008 with its largest Broward sample ever at 9,135 students.

Exhibits 2-4 compare the findings of the two surveys of alcohol use among Broward County HighSchool Students. CDCP’s is the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey and FL-YS is the FloridaYouth Substance Abuse Survey.

SurveyYear

(Sample Size)

FL-YS2000

(2,601)

CDCP2001

(2,112)

FL-YS2002

(1,981)

CDCP2003

(2,210)

FL-YS2004

(2,210)

CDCP2005

(1,674)

FL-YS2006

(1,462)

CDCP2007

(1,347)

FL-YS2008

(9,135)



Exhibit 2

Percent of Broward High School StudentsReporting Any Lifetime Alcohol Use

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

%9-1

2G

rad

eR

ep

ort

ing

CDCPAny Lifetime use

FL-YS Any Lifetime use

CDCPAny Lifetime use 74.8 73.9 72.9 73.8 71.4

FL-YS Any Lifetime use 69.9 69.3 65.5 64.1 64.1

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Sources: CDC&P Youth Risk behavior Surveillance and Florida Youth Substance Abuse SurveyExhibit 3

Percent of Broward High School StudentsReporting Current Alcohol Use

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

CDCP Past 30-day use

FL-YS Past 30-day use

CDCP Past 30-day use 44.1 43.9 42 38.3 42.6

FL-YS Past 30-day use 44 39.9 36 34.1 37.3

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Sources: CDC&P Youth Risk behavior Surveillance and Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey



Exhibit 4

Percent of Broward High School StudentsReporting 5+ Drinks in a Row

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

CDCP 5+ drinks in row Past 30 days

FL-YS 5+ drinks in row Past 2 weeks

CDCP 5+ drinks in rowPast 30 days

20.1 21.1 20.3 17.6 20.5

FL-YS 5+ drinks in rowPast 2 weeks

22.8 20.3 17.2 17 18.8

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Sources: Center for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk behavior Survey 1999-2007and Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey 2000 to 2008

The three indicators of (1) Lifetime prevalence, (2) Past 30-Day prevalence, and (3) Binge-drinking of 5or more drinks in a row in the past 30 days are included in both surveys of Broward high schoolstudents. Both surveys validated one another for these three questions between 2000 and 2008 withfindings within the same 95% confidence intervals. Recent findings may be generalized to report that(1) two-thirds (68 percent) of high school students in Broward County reported at least one lifetimeexperience of consuming alcohol, (2) while 40 percent report use within the past 30 days of taking thesurvey, (3) and half of them (20 percent) report binge drinking within the past month. In the mostrecent years, any lifetime use of alcohol has stabilized but current use and binge drinking haveincreased among Broward high school students.

Comparison of findings for the 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey from Broward County withneighboring counties, the State of Florida, and national rates are provided in Exhibits 5 and 6. BrowardCounty high school students reported similar rates of alcohol use as those in the compared regions witha slightly lower rate of binge drinking but the highest rate of “usually purchasing alcohol at a retailstore” among those who report current alcohol use. Alcohol trends from 1995 to 2007 are shown inExhibit 7. The question on retail purchase was first asked in 2007.

% of 9-12GradersReporting



Exhibit 5

Percent of High School Students

Reporting Alcohol Use 2007

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Any lifetime use Use in past 30

days

Binge drinking

last 30 days

United States

State of Florida

Broward County

Miami- Dade County

Palm Beach County

Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2007Exhibit 6

Percent of High School Students Reporting AlcoholUse and Behaviors 2007

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

1st drink before13yrs

Usually Buy atRetail Store

Rode with drinkingdriver last 30 days

Drove after drinkinglast 30 days

United States

State of Florida

Broward County

Miami-Dade County

Palm Beach County

Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2007



Exhibit 7

Percent Broward HS StudentsReporting Alcohol Behaviors

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007

%H

SS

tud

en

tsR

ep

ort

ing

1st Drink Before Age 13

Drank at school past 30 days

Rode with driver who drank past 30 days

Drove after drinking past 30 days

Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey 1995-2007

A further comparison of regional high school student alcohol use is provided from the 2008 FloridaYouth Substance Abuse Survey in Exhibit 8. Rates are similar across the three counties and State.Among Broward County high school students, 64.1 percent reported any lifetime use of alcohol, 37.3percent reported current use, and 18.8 percent reported binge drinking in the past 2 weeks.Exhibit 8

Percent of High School Students

Reporting Alcohol Use 2008

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Lifetime Past 30 Days Binge Last 2

Weeks

Percent of HS

Students

Florida

Broward

Miami-Dade

Palm Beach

Source: Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey 2008



Middle School Students

Prevalence rates of alcohol use for middle school students in Broward County are available from the2000 through 2008 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys. Exhibit 9 presents those findings for thethree questions on any lifetime use, any use in the past 30 days, and binge drinking in the past 2 weeks.Broward middle school students reported increases in for any lifetime and current alcohol use from 2000to 2004 then a sharp decline in 2006 that continued downward at a slower pace by 2008. Rates of bingedrinking among Broward middle school students declined from 8.9 percent in 2000 to 6.9 percent in2002 but then returned to 8.8 percent in 2004 before falling to 5.6 percent in 2006 and 5 percent in 2008.

Exhibit 10 compares rates of alcohol use among Broward middle school students in 2008 with those forthe State of Florida and neighboring counties. Broward 6th through 8th graders’ rate of any lifetimealcohol use at 36.6 percent was higher than the rates for the State or neighboring counties. The Browardmiddle school rate of current past 30-day alcohol use at 16.8 percent was slightly below the rates for theState and Miami-Dade County and similar to the 16.5 percent rate for Palm Beach County. Broward’smiddle school rate of reported binge drinking in the past two weeks at 5 percent was below those for theState and the neighboring counties.

Exhibit 9


Percent of Broward Middle School

Students Reporting Alcohol Use

2000 - 2008

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Any Lifetime Use Use in Past 30 Days Binge Drinking Last

2 weeks

Percent of

Middle Sch

Students

2000

2002

2004

2006

2008



Exhibit 10

Percent of Middle School StudentsReporting Alcohol Use 2008

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Lifetime Past 30 Days Binge Last 2

Weeks

Percent of Middle

Sch Students

Florida

Broward

Miami-Dade

Palm Beach


Middle and High School Students and Youth Aged 12-17 Years

The rate of current alcohol use among Broward middle and high school students by gender is tracked inExhibit 11 from results of 2000 to 2008 the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys. While the rate forgirls remains higher in 2008, boys reported a higher increase in alcohol use between 2006 and 2008.

Exhibit 12 tracks perceived attitudes about alcohol among Broward middle and high school studentsfrom the 2000 to 2008 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys. About two-thirds of studentsconsistently reported that it would be “wrong” or “very wrong” for someone their age to drink alcoholregularly. The percentage of students reporting a perceived “great risk of harm” in having one or moredrinks of alcohol every day increased from 41.6 percent in 2000 to 45.6 percent in 2008. Yet, thepercent of students reporting that it would be seen as “cool” to drink alcohol increased from 8 percent in2000 to 10.5 percent in 2008.

The percent of Broward high school students who reported having first use alcohol by age 13 years oryounger decreased from 2000 to 2008 as tracked in Exhibit 13 from the Florida Youth Substance AbuseSurvey. Those who reported having had their first drink of alcohol, defined as “more than a sip or two”declined from 40.7 percent in 2000 to 31.8 percent in 2008. Those who reported using alcohol at leastonce a month by age 13 or younger also declined from 8.1 percent in 2000 to 5.5 percent in 2008. Earlyinitiation of alcohol has been identified as a critical factor linked to lifelong problems, a 21st Centurystudy revealed 47 percent of those who first drank at the age of 13 experienced an alcohol dependencyproblem at sometime in their life as compared to 9 percent who had their first drink at age 21.



Exhibit 11

Current Alcohol Use Among BrowardMiddle and High School Students

by Gender 2000-2008

27.8

26

29.6

28.4

30.9 28.828.5

30.3

32.8

30.8

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

%Reportin

gUsePast30Days

Male

Female

Source: Florida Dept. of Children & FamiliesFlorida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys 2000-2008

Exhibit 12

Perceived Attitudes about Alcohol AmongBroward County Middle and High School

Students 2000-2008

Source: Florida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys 2000-2008

6666.7

63.9

66.867.8

45.644.542.1

39.1

41.6

10.58.298.18

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

%R

ep

ort

ing

Cu

rren

tU

se

Wrong toDrinkRegularly

Daily UseHarmful

Seen asCool toDrink



Exhibit 13

Percent of Broward County High School StudentsReporting Alcohol Use by Age 13 or Younger

2000-2008

40.7

8.7

38.4

6.5

36.9

5.8

40.1

5.9

31.8

5.5

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

More thana Sip orTwo

Drinking atleast Oncea Month

Source: Florida Youth Substance Abuse Surveys 2000-2008

%R

ep

ort

ing

Us

eb

yA

ge

13

Sub-state data by age cohorts from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) werereleased in 2007 providing local results for 350 areas in the United States including Broward County.The findings were prepared by combining 3 years of NSDUH results (2002-2004) to provide adequatesamples representative of the local areas. Exhibit 14 compares the rates among youth ages 12-17 yearsfor the nation, the State of Florida, and Broward County on three survey questions related to alcohol.The questions address prevalence rates of current, past month use of alcohol and binge alcohol use in thepast month, as well as the perception of great risk in having five or more drinks of an alcoholic beverageonce or twice a week. The Broward rates for all three questions were statistically similar to those forFlorida and the nation.



Exhibit 14

Percent of Youth Aged 12-17 Reporting A lcoho l UseUSA, F lor ida, and Bro ward Co unty

0

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0U S A

F lo r id a

B r o w a r d

U S A 1 7 .6 1 0 . 8 3 8 .3

F lo r id a 1 7 .4 9 .6 3 9 .6

B ro w a rd 1 8 .9 9 .6 4 0 .3

P a s t M o n th

U s e

B in g e U s e

P a s t M o n t hG re a t R is k

Sou rce: National Surveys on Dru g Use an d Health 2002-2004 Sub state Data

%o

f1

2-1

7Y

ea

rO

l ds

Re

po

rtin

g

Young Adults Aged 18 to 25 Years

Exhibit 15 reveals significantly higher prevalence rates of any past month use and binge drinkingamong young adults than youth while Broward young adults had slightly lower rates of any past monthuse and of binge drinking than the same age group in Florida and the nation. Perceived great risk ofharm related to weekly binge drinking was higher in Broward County than the State and nation.Exhibit 15

P erc en t o f Y ou n g Adu lts Ag ed 18-25 R ep o rtin gAlco h o l U se: U S A, F lo rid a, and B ro w ard C o u n ty

0

10

20

30

40

50

60U S A

Flor ida

B row ard

U S A 60.6 41 3 2 .3

F lo rid a 59.3 39 3 7 .1

B row ard 58.5 37 .3 3 9 .6

P ast M onth

U s e

B in ge U se

P a s t M on thGre a t R isk

S ource: N atio nal S urveys o n Dru g U se an d H ealth 200 2 -2004 S ubstate Data

%o

f1

8-2

5Y

ear

Old

sR

ep

ort

ing



Adults Aged 26 Years and Older

Exhibit 16 reports that Broward adults aged 26 years and older had a similar rate of current alcohol useas local young adults. Rates of binge drinking were significantly lower for adults than young adults(Exhibit 15) locally, across Florida, and nationally while binge drinking rates were similar among adultsacross the three areas. The perception of great harm from weekly binge drinking was 2.4 percent higheramong Broward County adults than those nationally and slightly less for all of Florida.

Exhibit 16

P ercent of Ad ults Ag ed 26 an d O ld er R eportingAlco hol U se : U S A, Florida, and B ro w ard C ounty

0

10

20

30

40

50

60U SA

F lo rid a

B ro w ard

U S A 53.1 21.3 43.8

F lo rida 54.5 20.5 46.7

B row ard 57.2 21.5 46.2

P ast M onthU se

B inge U seP ast M onth

G reat R isk

Source: N ationa l S urve ys on D rug U se and H ealth 2002 -2004 S ubstate D ata

%A

ged

26

Yr s

.&

Old

er

Rep

ort

ing

Across the Lifespan

Exhibit 17 combines youth, young adult, and adult alcohol rates from the NSDUH (Exhibits 14, 15, and16) to provide estimates of alcohol use and perception of harm from weekly binge drinking for thegeneral population. Broward residents reported higher rates of current alcohol use than those for all ofFlorida and the nation. Broward rates of binge drinking in the past month were similar to those for thenation and State. Likewise, Broward and State residents reported an identical rate of harm perceptionrelated to weekly binge alcohol use that was above the national rate. While there are variations acrossthe three areas, the relative similarity of these data indicates the endemic rather than epidemic nature ofalcohol abuse in the United States. Thus, there are not necessarily dramatic differences in the patternsof alcohol use and abuse across communities in the United States.



Exhibit 17

Percent of Population Aged 12 and Above ReportingAlcohol Use: USA, Florida, and Broward County

0

10

20

30

40

50

60USA

Florida

Broward

USA 50.4 22.8 41.7

Florida 51.5 21.6 44.9

Broward 53.7 22.1 44.9

Past MonthUse

Binge UsePast Month

Great Risk

Source: National Surveys on Drug Use and Health 2002-2004 Substate Data

%A

ged

12

an

dA

bo

ve

Rep

ort

ing

Exhibit 18 reports on current use of alcohol and illicit drugs including the non-medical use ofmedications across the national population by age groups from the 2007 National Survey on Drug Useand Health. Alcohol use as shown on the striped bars rises from 2.2 percent at age 12 to 71.8 percent atage 21. Unlike illicit drug use that declines steadily after age 20, current alcohol use remains above 50percent for age groups through 59 years before declining to 38.1 percent of those aged 65 and older.Thus alcohol use spans across all generations.Exhibit 18

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26-

29

30-

34

35-

39

40-

44

45-

49

50-

54

55-

59

60-

64

65

or

+

Illicit Drug

Alcohol

Alcohol or Illicit Drug Use in the Past 30 DaysBy Age 12 – 65 +

Perc

ent

Usin

g

Age

Source: National Survey on Drug Use and Health 2007 released September 2008



Alcohol-Related Consequences

Deaths

An alcohol-related death is one in which ethanol is detected in a deceased person by the medicalexaminer’s office. There were 407 alcohol-related deaths in Broward County during 2007 and 162 in thefirst six months of 2008. These figures represent a decline from the 467 such deaths during 2006 andthe 419 such deaths in 2005. There were 326 alcohol-related deaths in 2004 and 324 in 2003. A reviewof the 569 Broward alcohol deaths during the 18-month period from January 2007 through June 2008 ispresented in exhibits 19-23. Males accounted for 81 percent of the decedents and 73 percent wereWhite, 17 percent were Black, and 9 percent were Hispanic. There were also three Asians and threeNative American alcohol-related decedents. Twenty of the deaths (or 3.5 percent) were amongunderage drinkers aged 15-20 years, 45 decedents (or 8 percent) were between 21 and 24 years of age,48 (or 8 percent) were between 25 and 29, and 42 (or 7 percent) were between 30 and 34 years. Thegreatest number of alcohol deaths occurred among those 45-54 years of age with 152 decedents,representing 27 percent of the alcohol-related deaths; 20 percent were aged 35-44 years, and 16 percentwere aged 55-64. Those over 64 years of age represented 9 percent of the alcohol-related deaths. Theaverage age of the alcohol-related decedents was 44 years and 11 months and the mean age was 46years.

Exhibit 19

Broward Alcohol Deaths Jan 2007 - Jun 2008

by Gender n=569

Male

81%

Female

19%

Source: Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office



Exhibit 20

Broward Alcohol Deaths Jan 2007 - Jun 2008By Race/Ethnicity n=569

Black

17%

Hispanic

9%

White

73%

Source: Broward County Medical Examiner’s OfficeExhibit 21

Broward Alcohol Deaths Jan 2007 - Jun 2008By Age n=569

152

115

42

48

20

53

91

45

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160

>64 yrs

55-64 yrs

45-54 yrs

35-44 yrs

30-34 yrs

25-29 yrs

21-24 yrs

15-20 yrs

# of Alcohol Deaths




Exhibit 22 classifies the alcohol deaths from January 2007 through June 2008 by manner of death.Accidental (non-traffic) death was the manner for 29 percent of the cases. Natural causes accounted for23 percent of the alcohol deaths. Accidental traffic deaths accounted for 20 percent or 115 alcohol-related deaths including 31 pedestrians killed. Blood alcohol levels among the deceased pedestriansranged from 0.03 % to 0.39 % and averaged at 0.21 %. Only three of the pedestrians had a legal bloodalcohol level below 0.08 %. Suicide was attributed to 18 percent of the alcohol medical examiner casesand detected in 43 homicide cases (or 8 percent). Seven of the cases remain pending or undetermined asto the manner of death. Eight of the deaths were attributed to acute alcohol overdose. Chronic alcoholabuse was the primary cause for 7 of the alcohol-related deaths in addition to 9 deaths attributed to livercirrhosis.

A total of 127 alcohol death (or 22 percent of such cases) during the 18 months from January 2007through June 2008 were listed as multiple drug overdoses including 101 cases that involved at least oneprescription medication. Exhibit 23 shows that narcotic opioid pain medications were reported in 43 (or8 percent) of the alcohol deaths, benzodiazepines were detected in 36 (or 6 percent), cocaine was in 30(or 5 percent) of the alcohol deaths, and heroin was associated with 3 of the alcohol deaths while musclerelaxants were found in 2 cases.

Exhibit 22

Broward Alcohol Deaths Jan 2007- Jun 2008

By Manner of Death n= 569167

115

100

14

43

130

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

ACCIDENT

Non-Traffic

ACCIDENT

TRAFFIC

SUICIDE HOMICIDE NATURAL Pending

#o

fA

lco

ho

lD

eath

s




Exhibit 23

Broward Alcohol-Related Deaths Jan 2007 - Jun 2008

Other Drugs Detected n=569

532

36

43

30

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

NarcoticAnalgesic

Benzo's Cocaine MuscleRelaxant

Heroin Other Rx

#o

fD

rug

Me

nti

on

s


Medical Emergencies

The Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Live! system recorded information on alcohol-relatedemergency department (ED) reports from 9 Broward hospitals from January 2007 to June 2008. Thus,the alcohol cases tracked by DAWN Live! are not a total or estimate of all the cases in the County, butdo provide a sample of such cases from which a profile of patients and problems may be reviewed. It isnot appropriate to compare the number of Dawn Live! reports from one time period to another becauseof differences in the sample of emergency departments reporting. DAWN tracks alcohol ED reportsfor adults only when alcohol is reported to have been used in-combination with at least one otherdrug. DAWN also tracks alcohol-only ED cases for anyone under 21 years of age. Exhibits 24-26reveal the demographics of the 3,873 patients in the sample of those who came into a Browardemergency room for an alcohol–related case during the 18-months between January 2007 and June2008.Of the total, 2,572 alcohol reports were made in 2007 and 1,301 were made in the first six months of2008. Males accounted for 62 percent and Whites for 67 percent, while Blacks represented 19 percentof the alcohol ED cases, and Hispanics accounted for 14 percent. Teens below the age of 18 accountedfor 39 percent of the 653 underage alcohol ED reports, while those aged 18 to 20 years accounted for 61percent. Another drug in-combination with alcohol was found in 49 percent of the underage alcohol EDreports. Those of legal drinking age, 21 years and older, represented 83 percent of the alcohol-relatedED cases, with those aged 35 to 44 comprising 27 percent of all the alcohol ED cases, the next largestgroups were those aged 45 to 54 years who accounted for 21 percent and those aged 21 to 29 comprising20 percent, 10 percent were aged 30 to 34, 4 percent were 55-64, and 1 percent were aged 65 or older.



Exhibit 24

Broward Alcohol Emergency DepartmentReports Jan. 2007 - June 2008

By Gender n= 3,873

Female38%

Male62%

Source: US Dept. HHS, SAMHSA-Office of Applied Studies DAWN Live!

Exhibit 25

66%

20%

14%

White

Black

Hispanic

Broward Alcohol Emergency Department ReportsBy Race/Ethnicity Jan 2007 –Jun 2008 n=3,873




Exhibit 26

Broward Alcohol Emergency Departmen

Reports Jan 2007 - Jun 2008 By Age

2

2

253

808

44

396

379

414

381

162

1030

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200

5 yr & younger

6-11 years

12-17 years

18-20 years

21-24 years

25-29 years

30-34 years

35-44 years

45-54 years

55-64 years

65 years & older


Exhibits 27-28 classify the alcohol-related emergency department reports by type of case and patientdisposition. Among the 3,873 cases from January 2007 to June 2008, 52 percent were charted assubstance abuse cases and an additional 19 percent were listed as seeking detox. Reports among thosebelow the age of 21 years involving alcohol only accounted for 9 percent of the cases, and Suicide wasthe case type for another 9 percent. Overmedication, often in combination with prescription medication,was listed in 8 percent of the cases (Exhibit 27).

Among alcohol-related emergency department patients, 34 percent were admitted to detox or treatment,a psychiatric unit, or other inpatient care, 25 percent were discharged to home, 21 percent were referredto detox or treatment, 11 percent were transferred to another facility, and 3 percent were releases to thepolice or jail (Exhibit 28).

Broward Alcohol Emergency DepartmentReports Jan 2007 – June 2008 By Age



Exhibit 27

Broward Alcohol Emergency Department Report

By Case Type Jan 2007- Jun 2008 n=3,873

740

105

24

2

341

335

321

2005

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500

Suicide attempt

Seeking detox

Under 21 Alcohol Only

Adverse reaction

Overmedication

Malicious poisoning

Accidental ingestion

Alcohol Abuse


Exhibit 28

Broward Alcohol Emergency Department ReportsJan 2007 - Jun 2008 by Patient Disposition n=3,873

102

40

600

105

2

57

48

964

822

640

408

85

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200

Discharged Home

Released to police/jail

Referred to detox/treatment

Admitted to critical care/ICU

Admitted to detox/ treatment

Admitted to psychiatric unit

Admited to other inpatient

Transferred

Left against medical advice

Died

Other

Not Documented




Alcoholism Treatment

Local addiction treatment data are from the Broward Addiction Recovery Center (BARC) from January2007 through June 2008. While these cases do not represent the total number of addiction treatmentcases for the County, they do provide a significant sample. Among the 7,471 adult patients admitted toBARC during the 18 months form January 2007 to June 2008, 55 percent cited alcohol as either aprimary, secondary, or tertiary drug of abuse. There were 1,412 alcohol mentions in the first half of2007, 1,326 in the second half of 2007, and 1,342 in the first six months of 2008. Of theses 4,080alcohol mentions, 66 percent were as the primary substance, 25 percent listed alcohol as their secondarydrug, and 9 percent of the alcohol mentions were as the tertiary drug of abuse (Exhibit 29).

Exhibit 30 breaks out the 2,706 BARC adult primary alcohol admission cases by age groups. Thegreatest number of alcohol admissions (n=1,070) were among clients aged 40-49 years. The secondhighest number of alcohol admissions (n=766) were among clients aged 50-59 years followed by thoseaged 30-39 (n= 469). Whites accounted for 73 percent of all the alcohol treatment mentions. Blacksaccounted for 23 percent of all the alcohol treatment cases. Multi-racial ethnicity accounted for 3percent of the alcohol cases; Hispanics were not identified in the data. There were also 4 NativeAmericans, 3 Asians, and 2 Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health reports that 98,706 Broward residents were in need of, butdid not receive treatment for alcohol abuse or dependency in the past year from among the 103,119 whowould meet the diagnostic criteria for either of those two disorders including the 44,572 considered tobe alcohol dependent.

Exhibit 29

January 2007 - June 2008 BARC

Alcohol Treatment Admissions

by Primary, Secondary, or Tertiary Drug n=4,080

Tertiary

9%

Primary

66%

Secondary

25%

Source: Broward Addiction Recovery Center



Exhibit 30


Exhibit 31

January 2007 - June 2008 BARC

Primary Alcohol Treatment Admissions

By Race n= 2,706

85

634

1,964

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

White Black Multi-Racial

# Alcohol

Primary

Admits


January 2007 - June 2008 BARC Primary AlcoholAdmissions By Age n= 2,706

1

128

766

1,070

469

17796

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1100

1200

18-24 25-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60+

#A

lco

ho

lA

dm

isis

on

s



Alcohol-Related Crime

Exhibit 32 tracks the number of Driving-Under-the-Influence (DUI) and liquor law violation arrests inBroward County from 2003 through the first half of 2008. Broward DUI arrests totaled 4,617 in 2003and 4,987 during 2004. With major hurricanes in 2005 the number dropped to 3,964 then rose to 4,081in 2006 and remained stable at 4,088 in 2007 and 2,039 arrests in the first half of 2008. Liquor lawviolation arrests in Broward County totaled 3,574 in 2003 and then declined to 2,636 in 2004 and to1,618 in 2005 then down to 1,548 in 2006 before rising to 2,731 in 2007 and 1,420 in the first sixmonths of 2008.

The gender and age of DUI and liquor law violation arrests are available on a statewide basis but not atthe county level. Exhibit 33 shows the similar patterns in the gender and age groups of DUI arresteesfrom 2003 through the first half of 2008. Both DUI and liquor law violations are dominated by adultmales. Likewise, among juveniles most arrestees for alcohol violations are males. Exhibit 34 reflects astable pattern of Liquor Law arrests from 2003 through the first six months of 2008 among juveniles andadults by gender. Exhibits 35 and 36 identify the numbers of DUI and Liquor Law Violations arrests bythe various police departments in Broward County during 2007 and the first half of 2008. Over the 18month period, the Broward Sheriff Office made 19 percent of the DUI arrests and the Hollywood PoliceDepartment made 27 percent of the Liquor Law Violation arrests.

Exhibit 32

4,617

3,574

4,987

2,636

3,964

1,618

4,081

1,548

4,088

2,731

2,039

1,420

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

4,000

4,500

5,000

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 1H2008

Broward Alcohol Arrests Jan 2007 - Jun 2008

DUI

Liquor Law Violations

Nu

mb

er

of

Arr

ests

Source: Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Uniform Crime Reports Part 2A



Exhibit 33

Florida DUI Arrests by Gender, Youth, & Adults

Jan 2003 - Jun 2008

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

#o

fA

rre

sts

Female Adult 11,460 11,206 11,531 11,413 12,962 6,801

Male Adult 45,068 44,119 45,679 43,477 45,396 22,374

Female Juvenile 97 111 91 93 138 47

Male Juvenile 351 369 270 295 328 139

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 1H2008


Exhibit 34

Florida Liquor Law Arrests Jan 2003 - Jun 2008

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

#o

fA

rrests

Female Adult 4,929 5,063 4,902 4,768 5,286 2,386

Male Adult 27,617 29,210 26,928 25,951 28,236 13,361

Female Juvenile 462 381 358 388 440 247

Male Juvenile 1,215 1,038 947 1,030 936 444

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 1H2008




Exhibit 35 Source: 2007 FL Department of Law Enforcement, Uniform Crime Reports Part 2A

Agency 2007 DUILiquor LawViolations

Broward County Total 4,088 2,731

Broward County Sheriffs Office 798 734

Dania Police Department 44 143

Deerfield Beach PoliceDepartment

142 115

Fort Lauderdale PoliceDepartment

47 7

Hallandale Police Department 21 8

Hollywood Police Department 340 1,123

Plantation Police Department 57 1

Pompano Beach PoliceDepartment

261 197

Pembroke Pines PoliceDepartment

217 15

Wilton Manors Police Department 35 11

Cooper City PD 38 3

Coconut Creek PD 103 14

Davie Police Department 193 21

Hillsboro Beach PoliceDepartment

3 0

Lauderdale-By-The-Sea PD 76 14

Lauderdale Lakes PD 25 9

Lauderhill PD 33 0

Lighthouse Point PoliceDepartment

1 0

Margate Police Department 240 39

Miramar Police Department 62 0

North Lauderdale PoliceDepartment

71 36

Oakland Park Police Department 490 126

Sea Ranch Lakes PoliceDepartment

0 0

Sunrise Police Department 72 20

Coral Springs Police Department 79 31

Pembroke Park Police Department 19 3

Tamarac Police Department 62 16

Ft. Lauderdale Intl. Airport PD 2 7

Parkland PD 17 2

Seminole Indian Reservation 100 11

Town of Southwest Ranches 6 5

Broward-DEP Div of Law Enforce 2 2

West Park Police Department 15 12

Broward-Division of InsuranceFraud

0 0

Broward-Florida Game Comm 9 0

Weston PD 31 6

FHP - Fort Lauderdale 371 0

Port Everglades PD 6 0



Exhibit 36 Source: Jan-Jun 2008 FL Dept of Law Enforcement, Uniform Crime Reports Part2A

Agency January to June 2008 DUILiquor LawViolations

Broward County Total 2,039 1,420

Broward County Sheriffs Office 339 154

Dania Police Department 13 41

Deerfield Beach PoliceDepartment

67 56

Fort Lauderdale PoliceDepartment

24 6

Hallandale Police Department 19 7

Hollywood Police Department 161 867

Plantation Police Department 57 2

Pompano Beach PoliceDepartment

127 122

Pembroke Pines PoliceDepartment

75 2

Wilton Manors Police Department 27 3

Cooper City PD 16 3

Coconut Creek PD 57 3

Davie Police Department 116 25

Hillsboro Beach PoliceDepartment

7 0

Lauderdale-By-The-Sea PD 37 4

Lauderdale Lakes PD 19 6

Lauderhill PD 8 0

Lighthouse Point PoliceDepartment

0 0

Margate Police Department 97 11

Miramar Police Department 42 3

North Lauderdale PoliceDepartment

27 14

Oakland Park Police Department 240 33

Sea Ranch Lakes PoliceDepartment

0 0

Sunrise Police Department 41 2

Coral Springs Police Department 38 14

Pembroke Park Police Department 5 5

Tamarac Police Department 47 18

Ft. Lauderdale Intl. Airport PD 4 1

Parkland PD 2 0

Seminole Indian Reservation 54 2

Town of Southwest Ranches 2 0

Broward-DEP Div of Law Enforce 2 12

West Park Police Department 4 0

Broward-Division of InsuranceFraud

0 0

Broward-Florida Game Comm 6 0

Weston PD 16 3

FHP - Fort Lauderdale 241 0

Port Everglades PD 2 1

For inquiries regarding this report, please contact: James N. Hall, NSU Center for the Study &Prevention of Substance Abuse, (786) 242-8222, E-mail: [email protected]@aol.com

Documents

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