Pubdate: Thursday, April 8, 1999 Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA) Copyright: 1999 San Francisco Chronicle Contact: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/ Forum: http://www.sfgate.com/conferences/ Author: Charlie Goodyear, Chronicle Staff Writer CONCORD CENTER TO STUDY DRUG USE Methamphetamine Abuse Called Epidemic A Concord drug treatment center will be one of seven sites nationwide to study methamphetamine abuse amid growing evidence that Contra Costa County is experiencing an epidemic of the cheap, powerful stimulant. And almost a decade into California's meth crisis, statistics show that Contra Costa has had a 50 percent higher hospital-admission rate for the drug than the rest of the state. "The numbers have really been rising in methamphetamine abuse," said Denise Mordecai of the New Leaf Treatment Center. "It's pretty astounding. I think Contra Costa County is one of the worst counties hit in the state. And California is one of the worst states in the nation." As part of a $3.1 million grant awarded by the federal Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, New Leaf will offer free drug counseling to as many as 200 people over the next three years. The goal is to compare the center's outpatient treatment program with eight-week and 16-week courses developed in Los Angeles to treat cocaine addicts. Three other such studies will be conducted in Daly City, Hayward and San Mateo along with clinics in San Diego, Montana and Hawaii. Nationally, an estimated 4 million people have used methamphetamine. According to New Leaf, nearly 20 percent of methamphetamine users are between the ages of 18 and 24. Here in California, state authorities seized 6.5 tons of it last year, and the state Department of Justice now devotes 75 percent of its anti-drug resources to curbing the spread of meth. Last week, 18 men were arrested in the East Bay on charges of manufacturing and distributing the drug, a bust that should provide plenty of subjects for the new Concord study. "Those arrests may make a dent in supply in a little while, which means more people are going to want treatment," Mordecai said. Chuck Deutschman, the county's substance abuse program administrator, said reliable figures are not available on how Contra Costa compares statewide in meth cases because many other counties do not report accurately or at all. But Deutschman agreed that the county is experiencing an above-average level of methamphetamine cases which is still increasing. More people are smoking the drug and as addicts grow older, the public may end up paying a high cost. "I think the biggest problem that we're facing is the aging of the addict population," Deutschman said. "Chronic use of meth leads to impairment of cognitive functioning. It's creating a huge burden on the jails and in emergency room psychiatric intakes. This drug is very destructive to human beings. It leads to bizarre behavior -- what we call tweakers -- and gratuitous violence." And meth use is posing an increasing threat to public safety in Contra Costa County as police, fire and hazardous materials teams are discovering more meth labs, which often contain flammable and toxic chemicals. "They definitely have increased," said Tracy Hein-Silva, spokeswoman for the county health department . "Our personnel are seeing more `Mom and Pop' drug labs, something operated out of your home or in your car. In 1998, we averaged one drug lab every three days. To date, we are responding to one lab every two days." Similarly, Concord police say they have seen a sharp spike in the number of meth labs uncovered. Officers located and dismantled 18 last year. So far, this year they have found 14, many being used to make drugs for personal use, said Lieutenant Gordon Cromwell. "The volume of sheer product is not as great," Cromwell said. "But the numbers alone this year are a concern. Many of these people are using chemicals that are toxic and create toxic fumes." For more information or to participate in the study, call (925) 688-0500. - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D