PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island ranked No. 8 among the United States and Washington, D.C., with the largest drug problems, according to WalletHub report Monday.
The report included data in three categories, drug use and addiction, law enforcement and drug issues and rehab.
Rhode Island ranked second worst in the nation behind the country’s capital for drug use and addiction. The Ocean State ranked No. 6 in the country for the largest share of adults who used illicit drugs in the past month at 16.9 percent and No. 2 highest in the nation for share of teens who have used illicit drugs in the past month at 12.5 percent.
The Ocean State ranked No. 4 for problems with drug health issues and rehab, with nearly 31 substance abuse treatment facilities per 100,000 people using illicit drugs, seventh-least among the states. Nearly half of addiction treatment medication was paid for by Medicaid, the most of all but one state.
The report ranked No. 50 for law enforcement of drug offenses, including ranking No. 48 for drug arrests per 1,000 residents, one of the lowest rates in the nation.
The study was based on data from several government agencies, research groups and health care companies.
