“Scarface” brought to the big screen the cocaine importation and business in South Florida. Cocaine has long been a problem, almost always, seeming without end, for Floridians in general and Miami specifically.
I cannot remember the last time I heard of some positive news regarding cocaine and its use in Miami. Yet here some is.
According to recent report cocaine use is on the decline in Miami. The soft economy in a state with 10 percent unemployment has made the long-popular drug a "pricey extravagance."
This is not the same coke Al Pacino was peddling as “Scarface” back in the day. The drug war has reduced the purity of cocaine, meaning users pay more and get less of the drug, and drug users are increasingly turning to cheaper prescription drugs that are easier to get.
The number of patients treated in emergency rooms for cocaine overdoses has also fallen recently, and the number of people seeking treatment for cocaine addiction fell to 549 last year from 918 the previous year, a 41 percent decline.
But prescription drug use has been on the rise. Among 9,000 people who died of drug-related causes statewide in 2010, 6,090 had used benzodiazepines and Oxycodone.
Cocaine ranked fifth in causes of drug deaths, behind crystal methamphetamine and alcohol.
Well – it is nice to get a little good news when it comes to use of such a horrific drug. Perhaps a good online drug class is in order for everyone to get the numbers even lower.