Impact
By using consumer marketing and advertising strategies as the basis for its outreach, the Meth Project has been repeatedly cited as a powerful private sector response to a devastating social problem. It was recognized by the White House as one of the nation's most powerful and creative anti-drug programs.
The Problem
The Colorado Meth Project was launched as a response to the state's critical methamphetamine problem. Meth use in Colorado is considerably higher than the national average, and according to the U.S. Department of Justice, methamphetamine is a primary drug threat to Colorado.1- Colorado's Front Range task force estimates methamphetamine availability in 2010 has increased 300 percent over 2009.2
- The annual cost to the state is estimated at $1.4 billion, including costs to the criminal justice, health and foster care systems, as well as lost productivity.3
- Colorado ranks #7 in the country for total Meth users 12 and older.4
- 76% of all Colorado Meth users entering treatment in 2010 reported first using Meth before age 25, and 43% started at 17 or younger.5
- 32% of all drug related offenses in Colorado in 2007 were Meth-related, 56% higher than the national average.6
- Colorado ranks #6 in the U.S. for per capita identity theft7 and law enforcement sources indicate that Meth addiction is responsible for almost two-thirds of identity theft crimes in Colorado.8
The Campaign
In May 2009, Governor Bill Ritter and Attorney General John Suthers officially launched the Colorado Meth Project's statewide advertising campaign, including TV, radio, print, online, outdoor, and grassroots community outreach campaign. The campaign has included:- 21,000 TV ads
- 33,000 Radio ads
- 708 Billboards
- 220,000,000 Online Impressions
The Impact
Since its inception in Colorado, the Meth Project's prevention program has demonstrated significant results in changing teen attitudes about Meth. According to the 2011 Colorado Meth Use & Attitude Survey9:- 88% of Colorado teens now see "great risk" in trying Meth once or twice, up 9 points from the 2009 benchmark
- 88% reported that the Colorado Meth Project ads made them less likely to try or use the drug
- Eight in ten teens agree their friends would give them a hard time if they, themselves, were to use Meth (82%, up 6 points from 76% in the 2009 benchmark)
- 97% of Colorado's estimated 400,000 teens have seen a Colorado Meth Project advertisement, with 67% reporting that they have seen the ads at least once a week10
- The organization has conducted more than 200 school and community presentations directly reaching more than 25,000 teens and young adults
- More than 500,000 Coloradans have been exposed to the Colorado Meth Project's outreach campaign through events large and small
- More than 1,100 Coloradans have signed up to volunteer for the organization, with 95 committed individuals who are currently active
1 U.S. Department of Justice, "DEA Fact Sheet: Colorado" 2008
2 The Denver Office of Drug Strategy, Denver Substance Abuse Trends, Denver Epidemiology Work Group (DEWG), October 2010
3 Estimate based on RAND, The Economic Cost of Methamphetamine Use in the United States, 2005 Cost Model
4 SAMHSA. Office of Applied Studies, National Surveys on Drug Use and Health 2006-2009.
5 Colorado Division of Behavioral Health, April 2011.
6 ONDCP, Profile of Drug Indicators, State of Colorado, 2008
7 Federal Trade Commission, Identity Theft Victim Complain Data, Identity Theft Clearinghouse, 2007
8 Attorney General Suthers Announces State's Largest Effort To Combat Methamphetamine Abuse July 25, 2006
9 Gfk Roper, Colorado Meth Use & Attitudes Survey, 2011
10 Gfk Roper, Colorado Meth Use & Attitudes Survey, 2011
2 The Denver Office of Drug Strategy, Denver Substance Abuse Trends, Denver Epidemiology Work Group (DEWG), October 2010
3 Estimate based on RAND, The Economic Cost of Methamphetamine Use in the United States, 2005 Cost Model
4 SAMHSA. Office of Applied Studies, National Surveys on Drug Use and Health 2006-2009.
5 Colorado Division of Behavioral Health, April 2011.
6 ONDCP, Profile of Drug Indicators, State of Colorado, 2008
7 Federal Trade Commission, Identity Theft Victim Complain Data, Identity Theft Clearinghouse, 2007
8 Attorney General Suthers Announces State's Largest Effort To Combat Methamphetamine Abuse July 25, 2006
9 Gfk Roper, Colorado Meth Use & Attitudes Survey, 2011
10 Gfk Roper, Colorado Meth Use & Attitudes Survey, 2011
