Download Chapter 4 - Drugs and the Law

Chapter 4
Drugs and
the Law
Slide show developed by:
Richard C. Krejci, Ph.D.
Professor of Public Health
Columbia College
2.2.16
A History of Drugs and the Law in the
United States
 Whiskey Rebellion – A violent objection by farmers in
Southwestern Pennsylvania in 1791 to an excise tax on
whiskey.
 Temperance Movement – A social trend in the United States in
the late 1700’s when groups sought to reduce alcohol use.
Significant Drug-Related Laws
 Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 (3:45)
 Established FDA
 Harrison Act of 1914
 Prescriptions for narcotics
 Marijuana Tax Act of 1937
 46 out of 48 states already had laws
 Food Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938
 Limited OTC drug sales (prior exception was only for
narcotics)
Significant Drug-Related Laws
 Humphrey-Durham Amendment (1951)
 Consistency of marketing of OTC vs. Prescription Drugs
 Gave U.S. Government more Power to oversee clinical
testing of drugs.
 Kefauver-Harris Amendments (1962)
 Issue with Thalidomide
 Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control
Act of 1970
 Federal precedence and establishment of drug schedules
 Anti-Drug Abuse Act (1988)
 National Drug Czar cabinet position
was established
Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906
Before 1906, patent medicines were largely
unregulated
 The United States was a free marketplace in terms of drugs.
 The 1906 law allowed the government to enter the
drug marketplace with the intent to regulate what was
stated on the drug label.
 Drug producers had to indicate what was in their
product.
U.S. Magazines Influenced the Passage of the
Pure Food and Drug Act
Harrison Act of 1914
 Passed because of the problems with opiate
dependency
 The law governed the marketing and sale of
narcotics, including regulating nonmedical narcotic
use, and made possession of narcotics without a
prescription illegal.
Marihuana Tax Act of 1937
 This Act resulted in forbidding the recreational use of
marijuana, but did not forbid medicinal or industrial
use.
 Anyone using marijuana was required to pay a tax
and failure to comply meant a large fine or prison
term for tax evasion.
Propaganda and Legislation
Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938
 Under the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act, a drug
manufacturer could not be prosecuted for fatalities
from use of a drug which they marketed.
 The 1938 Act closed that loop hole:
 Required pharmaceutical companies to file applications with
the federal government documenting that the new drug they
wanted to market was safe
 Law excluded already-existing drugs
 Drugs marketed did not have to be proven effective
Kefauver-Harris Amendments
In 1962, as a result of the problems with
thalidomide, the Kefauver-Harris
Amendments were passed
The result:
 lead to implementation of stronger
regulations regarding drug testing
 gave the FDA authority to
withdraw drugs from the market
Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and
Control Act of 1970
 Also known as the “Controlled Substances Act”, this legislation
had the effect of repealing, replacing, or updating all previous
federal laws dealing with narcotics and dangerous drugs.
 Federal enforcement and prosecution would take precedence
over sate laws if there was any illegal activity involving
controlled drugs.
 Commission on marijuana and drug abuse was established.
 “Controlled substances” were divided into five categories called
schedules.
Drug Efficacy Study (1972)
 Evaluation of active ingredients in drugs
 Established three categories of
ingredients
1. Safe, effective, properly labeled
2. GRAS (must be removed if unsafe within 6
months.
3. Insufficient data
Drug Schedules
“Controlled substances” were included in one of five
schedules based on the:
 potential for abuse
 potential for dependence
 pharmacological effects
 risk to public health
The drug schedules provided a
framework for assessing legal penalties.
Schedule of Controlled Substances
Drug Paraphernalia
Drug Paraphernalia: laws related to drug
paraphernalia (cigarette rolling papers, water pipes,
razors) have been passed:
 Problematic because many household products can
be construed as drug paraphernalia
 For example, razor blades to cut cocaine or the straws to
drink beverages can be used to snort cocaine
War on Drugs (1971)
War on Drugs: People agree that drug abuse is
undesirable, but should drug abuse be treated as a
criminal or public health problem?
The government’s assault on illicit drugs has
resulted in:
 Social tension, ill health, violent crime, compromised
civil liberties, and international conflict
War on Drugs
Photos taken from the DEA website: http://www.justice.gov/dea/index.shtml
Legalization of Drugs
Arguments for legalization of drugs have compelling
premises.
 If drugs were “legal” or decriminalized would that
reduce drug use?
 Even if drugs were “legal” there would always be a
“black market”.
Drug Enforcement
Drug enforcement, especially the efforts of the Drug
Enforcement Agency (DEA), are comprehensive.
 Interdiction is difficult because of numerous points of
entry.
 Only about 10-15% of all the drugs entering the
United States are seized.
Cocaine Transportation
How do illegal drugs make their way in to the U.S. ?
Fig 4.1, p. 86
Arguments For and Against Drug
Decriminalization
For
Against
 Quality of drug is regulated
 Drug use may increase
 Less need for jails
 More need for treatment
 Crime may be reduced
 Profit motive is reduced
 Drug users will be treated
rather than incarcerated
programs
 Drug use could be perceived
as acceptable
 Drug dealers might target
children
 Protection of individual rights
 Drug use is morally wrong
 Money is directed to drug
 Private drug use negatively
education instead of
enforcement
affects society
Federal Drug Control Spending
Drug Arrests
2010 Data: The highest number of arrests were for drug abuse violations (estimated at
1,638,846 arrests) and driving under the influence (estimated at 1,412,223).
(data taken from the FBI website, http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2010/crime-in-the-u.s.-2010/persons-arrested
Drug Prevention
 Preventing use of drugs may be a better investment
than drug enforcement.
 Normalization, whereby users of soft drugs such as
marijuana are not prosecuted, may be another option
for dealing with drug abuse.
Harm Reduction
Harm reduction is gaining favor as an approach to
preventing drug abuse.
 Involves reducing the risk of drug abuse by providing
sterile syringes to people who inject drugs
 Many moral and ethical issues surround harm
reduction
Racism and Drug Enforcement
The “War on Drugs” is marred by racial biasing:
 For example, Blacks comprise less than 15% of the U.S.
population, but comprise 32% of those arrested for drugs.
 There are disparities in drug sentencing depending on race and
even type of drug involved in the offense.
Number of U.S. Aids Cases by
Transmission Category
2005
2007 2010
Mandatory Minimum Drug Sentencing
In the mid-1980s the U.S. Congress enacted some
mandatory minimum penalties focused on drugs and
violent crimes:
 Reflects a zero-tolerance for drugs and with no
exceptions
 This sends the message that regardless of the
context there will be minimum sentencing involved
with drug offenses.
Mandatory Minimum Drug Sentencing
For example, federal law requires an individual
convicted of possessing ½ kg or more of cocaine be
sentenced to a prison term of at least 5 years.
 By imposing mandatory sentences, drug dealers
incur greater risk
Summary
 During the American Colonial period, the first drug to
be regulated was alcohol.
 The temperance movement took shape in the late
1700s.
 In the early 1800s there was a movement to restrict
opium.
Summary
 One of the first nationwide drug laws was the Pure
Food and Drug Act of 1906.
 The Harrison Narcotic Act in 1914 restricted the use
of narcotics.
 Congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act in 1937; the
law imposed a tax on prescribing, growing, and
selling marijuana.
 The Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and
Control Act in 1970 resulted in the creation of drug
schedules
 The primary target was the drug dealer
Summary
 To discourage individuals from using drugs the Anti-
Drug Abuse Act was passed in 1988.
 The cost of drug enforcement is enormous.
 Due to the many points of entry, stopping drugs from
crossing the border is not easy.
The End
Slide show developed by:
Richard C. Krejci, Ph.D.
Professor of Public Health
Columbia College
All Rights Reserved