Adolescent Substance Abuse and Mental Health: Problem Co-Occurrence and Access to Services

The purpose of this study is to identify factors associated with adolescent alcohol or drug (AOD) abuse/dependence, mental health and co-occurring problems; as well as factors associated with access to treatment. This is a secondary analysis of data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) 2000. The 12-month prevalence rate of adolescents with only mental health problems was 10.8%, 5.1% had only AOD abuse/dependence only, and 2.7% had co-occurring problems. Approximately 15% of youth reported receiving behavioral health treatment in the past 12 months. Several factors associated with having behavioral health problems and receiving treatment are presented.