Puerto Rican Admissions to Substance Abuse Treatment

摘要

Substance abuse by Hispanics is of special concern because of the rapid growth of this popula-tion. The number of Hispanics in the United States increased from about 35 million in 2000 to 44 million in 2006 and is projected to more than double to nearly 103 million by 2050.1 Hispan-ics of Puerto Rican background were the second largest Hispanic group in the United States in 2007 (4.1 million), after those of Mexican background (29.2 million).2 Although Hispanics are commonly grouped together in a single category of ethnicity, this group is not homogenous, consisting of individuals who self-identify by country of origin, such as (but not limited to) Puerto Rican Hispanics, Cuban Hispanics, or Mexi-can Hispanics. The distinctions among these groups are important culturally and linguistically and may be reflected in differing patterns of substance use and abuse. This report focuses on admissions for Puerto Rican Hispanics.