"A new report finds that alcohol and drug abuse cost Alaska’s economy $1.2 billion in 2010. That number includes direct, immediate costs, such as the $217.7 million spent on criminal justice and protective services and $237.3 million on health care costs. But the report, which was commissioned by the Alaska Mental Health Board and the Advisory Board on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, says the largest impact comes from lost productivity....
“Children who go up in families with an addict parent often experience lifetime consequences from this adverse childhood experience,” Burkhart said. “So they do more poorly in school, they may not pursue a post-secondary education, and so their economic opportunities are more limited. It creates this sort of vicious cycle where the ability to participate in the economy can be limited at the beginning of life, not just at adulthood.”
http://www.alaskapublic.org/2012/10/29/drug-alcohol-abuse-costs-alaskas-economy-1-2-billion/
Comments (0)