A new study shows that overdoses in the Pacific Northwest have increased despite decriminalization laws, not because of them.

“There’s always the hope that states function as laboratories of democracy, and when one state does something that makes sense and seems to work, that other states will adopt it,” says Davis. “Arrests went way down, overdoses didn’t change: To me, that’s an improvement over the previously existing system.”

    • Showroom7561
      78·
      1 year ago

      However…

      “The number of Portuguese adults who reported prior use of illicit adult drugs rose from 7.8% in 2001 to 12.8% in 2022 — still below European averages but a significant rise nonetheless. Overdose rates now stand at a 12-year high and have doubled in Lisbon since 2019. Crime, often seen as at least loosely related to illegal drug addiction, rose 14% just from 2021 to 2022. Sewage samples of cocaine and ketamine rank among the highest in Europe (with weekend spikes) and drug encampments have appeared along with a European rarity: private security forces.” source, which is a good read with more context on the situation

      Portugal simply shifted a few stats, but they made their drug problem worse over the years.

      • tomi000@lemmy.world
        5·
        1 year ago

        Thanks for the stats, a shift over 1 year is not representative though, even more so because it was during corona, which everyone knows fucked up all social statistics

        • Showroom7561
          11·
          1 year ago

          Crime was the only one that was represented in back to back years.

          I think the key stats are the 12 year high for overdoses, and the significant rise in drug use, quite literally since the program went into effect in 2001. Even the sewage measurements, being the highest in Europe, is pretty grim.