A new survey released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides fresh evidence that Idaho’s efforts to combat methamphetamine are working.
The National Youth Risk Behavior Survey shows that between 2007 and 2009, meth use among U.S. teens dropped from 4.4 percent to 4.1 percent. By comparison, use among Idaho teens declined by 52 percent during the same period, from 6.4 percent in 2007 to 3.1 percent in 2009.
The report showed that Idaho saw the largest decline in teen meth use of any state over the past two years.
Gov. Butch Otter called the numbers encouraging, and gave credit to a combination of law enforcement, treatment, and prevention efforts like the Idaho Meth Project. The governor cautioned that the fight is not over, citing a U.S. Justice Department report that the supply of meth throughout the United States is at a five-year high.
