| ■ Teens Having Easier Time Getting Prescription Drugs | 2008.08.19 |
| It's easier to illegally obtain prescription drugs such as OxyContin, Percocet, Vicodin or Ritalin than it is to get beer, say a growing number of American teens. Researchers at the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University surveyed 1,002 12- to-17-year-olds and found that 19 percent said it was easier for them to obtain prescription drugs than to get their hands on beer, cigarettes or marijuana, compared with 13 percent a year ago, The Washington Post reported. The study also found that 34 percent of teens who abuse prescription drugs get them at home or from their parents. About 25 percent of the teen respondents said marijuana is the easiest substance to buy, and 43 percent of 17-year-olds said they could purchase marijuana in less than an hour, The Post reported. |