Drug use

Drug Use Issues 

Choose a current issue in the news or new or proposed legislation regarding a drug discussed in Chapters 1 and 2 (opioids, alcohol, marijuana, methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, prescription medications, morphine, tobacco or club drugs).  For example, the city of San Diego recently decided to allow both cultivation and distribution of recreational marijuana. In another example, the federal Department of Health and Human Services is investigating why insurance companies make opioids more accessible than other pain treatments by making opioids less expensive.

Use what you learned from the article/news report, from Chapters 1 and 2 in your textbook and from your sources to answer the following questions: 

1 ARTICLE/NEWS REPORT: Give a very brief summary of what the article says.

2 MESSAGES: What messages is this article/report giving? What conflicting or mixed messages are being given about this issue to the public?

3 RESTRICTIVE LEGISLATION: What restrictive legislation or policies exist relating to this issue?

4 ATITUDES: What are the present-day attitudes related to this issue?

5 POPULATIONS: Does this issue have a greater impact on certain populations?  Which ones (age, region, ethnicity, socioeconomic level or other)?

6 PREVALENCE: What is the prevalence of use of this substance (most recent year available)?

7 VIOLENCE: Is this substance associated with violence or crime (pharmacological, economically compulsive or systemic – see pages 38-39 of text book)?

8 OPINION: What is your opinion on this issue and why? (For example, do you agree with the proposed legislation or policy change? What do you think about increasing or decreasing access to the substance?)

FORMAT: Use the following headings for your post (See sample post) 

1 ARTICLE/NEWS REPORT:

2 MESSAGES:

3 RESTRICTIVE LEGISLATION:

4 ATITUDES:

5 POPULATIONS:

6 PREVALENCE:

7 VIOLENCE:

8 OPINION:

Sources: 

• You are required to use at least TWO sources from government reports, peer-reviewed journal articles or textbooks. You can use the course textbook but it will not count as one of the two required sources. 

• Use your OWN WORDS (e.g., do not cut and paste from a government report or article). 

• Do NOT use any quotations.  Paraphrase (use your own words) to report the information.

• Write the source of your information at the end of the applicable sentences using APA format AND list all the references in APA format at the end of your post.